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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/28781208">A Single Ripple</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kyuubi_no_Shinigami/pseuds/Kyuubi_no_Shinigami'>Kyuubi_no_Shinigami</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Naruto</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Action/Adventure, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Gen, Romance, Team Bonding, Teamwork</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>In-Progress</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2021-01-16</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2021-01-24</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-13 07:15:23</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Mature</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>4</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>41,187</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/28781208</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kyuubi_no_Shinigami/pseuds/Kyuubi_no_Shinigami</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>What if the events at Kanabi Bridge had gone in another direction? What if Minato was able to arrive in time to try to save Obito? What changes would come about from this single ripple? Follow the story of Naruto and the ninja of Konoha as it unfolds... a bit differently. SmartNaruto, PowerfulNaruto, PowerfulTeam7, CaretakerSarutobi, NaruSaku, ObiRin, ShikaIno (Slow Burn)</p>
<p>Also posted on FF.net</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Haruno Sakura/Uzumaki Naruto, Nohara Rin/Uchiha Obito</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>12</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>27</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. As It Begins</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>/-Border between Land of Fire and Land of Mushrooms-/</p><p>The raindrops pelted Kakashi, covering him from head to toe as he rushed through the forest on the outskirts of the Land of Fire. Everything had happened so fast. Kakashi thought he had been prepared. He had been touted as a natural born genius, born once or twice in a generation. Promoted to jonin and given the lead of his team by Minato-sensei on this very mission...</p><p>The trees whipped by at breakneck speed. His arms and hands tightened on his cargo; Rin Nohara, unconscious from chakra exhaustion. Kakashi saw a flash in the distance before a loud crack that seemed to shake the forest around him. His mind ran as fast as the lightning appeared and vanished. His left eye remained shut, the pain coursing through it a bitter but much needed reminder that Kakashi wasn't perfect. He wasn't infallible. His friends had paid the price for his arrogance, and his heart hung heavy like lead in his chest.</p><p>Everything had happened so quickly. The entire mission to the Land of Mushrooms and Kusagakure no Sato had passed by in a blur. The attack by the Iwa shinobi Mahiru, Kakashi's failure in their battle, the fight he had with Obito, Minato-sensei informing them he had to split up with the team in the morning, the ambush by Mahiru's teammates Kakko and Taiseki. When they captured Rin... perhaps that was when things began to slow down and crystalize for Kakashi. He had wanted to push ahead with the mission objectives. Obito had wanted to rescue Rin.</p><p>Obito had punched Kakashi then, and said words that Kakashi would take to his grave; "Those that abandon the rules are trash, but those who abandon their teammates are worse than trash." The image of his father, Sakumo, flashed in Kakashi's mind. His heart clenched and his mind raged with doubts. Eventually, Obito's words won out and Kakashi turned back to join the young Uchiha. He arrived just in time to save Obito from Taiseki, and the two young ninja managed to turn the tables and take the Iwa shinobi down.</p><p>It was when the two Konoha ninja reached the cave where Kakko held Rin captive that things took a turn for the worse. Kakashi and Obito barely managed to face down the Iwa jonin, as both shinobi were apprehensive about putting Rin at risk. There was a brief exchange of ninjutsu, quick and ferocious, which caused the integrity of the cave to become compromised. Obito managed to grab Rin in the confusion, just as Kakashi managed to land his Chidori on Kakko. However, as they fled the collapsing cave, Kakashi fell behind and was nearly crushed.</p><p>Instead, Obito used Kawarimi no jutsu to switch places with Kakashi, saving the boy's life. Kakashi would never forget the sight of his teammate under those rocks. Never in all his years of living would he forgive himself for failing Obito. Rin cried and begged and pleaded and struggled to move the rocks. Kakashi simply stared at Obito, numb and motionless. Obito's weak voice then shattered the silence, as the young Uchiha pleaded with his teammates to take his remaining Sharingan eye and implant it into Kakashi's damaged eye socket. Rin and Kakashi were in disbelief, but Obito managed to convince Rin to act. The young woman used the last of her chakra and all she knew of medical jutsu in order to pull off the transplant.</p><p>Kakashi's stomach clenched violently and he almost lost his footing on the branches. The trees and their leaves were slick now, the downpour sparing nothing from its wet embrace. His hair clung to his forehead in clumps. His left eye burned, and a bit of blood leaked down from his clenched socket like a crimson tear. Rin remained motionless on his back, and he readjusted his grip again. His mind spun, a storm of emotions and thoughts fighting to break free of his skull. Worry and anxiety coursed through his veins. Desperation and just the faintest glimmer of hope sprung from his heart.</p><p>'Please... please let us get there in time...' he thought desperately.</p><p>Kakashi had stared down at Obito with the boy's own Sharingan. Nausea gripped him tightly. His already depleted chakra pool began to drain rapidly. Kakashi clenched his eye shut and placed his hand on Obito's arm. Rin, sobbing now, touched her forehead to Obito's and pleaded with the boy to hold on. Minato-sensei could be here any moment... Kakashi's head jerked up at his teammate's remark. Unconsciously his fingers were already moving to the Hiraishin kunai in his pouch. His breath hitched as his fingers wrapped around the rough handle. Without a second thought, Kakashi threw it into the ground a few feet away from them. Seconds later a yellow flash crackled into life, and Minato Namikaze appeared before his team.</p><p>His eyes widened upon taking in the situation. He locked eyes with Kakashi, shocked to see the boy briefly open his left eye to reveal a Sharingan. Minato's head spun with ideas and visions of what had befallen his team, but no more than a second passed before he was accessing the situation and engaging a plan of some kind. He barked orders for Kakashi to see to Rin and escort her back to Konoha safely. Without missing a beat Minato then grabbed hold of Obito and disappeared in a yellow flash.</p><p>That had been hours ago. Kakashi had scooped up Rin and ran as fast as his legs could carry him. No clear image sat in his head of what awaited him in Konoha or what exactly Minato-sensei was doing. Kakashi knew from his sensei's lectures that there were limits to the Hiraishin jutsu. How far had the man managed to flee with Obito? Did they make it to Konoha in an instant? Were they still rushing through the forest, same as he was? Did Minato have a seal tag in some nearby hospital in a town in the Land of Fire? In the end, would any of it matter?</p><p>Kakashi had seen the extent of Obito's injuries. The young boy had his entire right side crushed, his right arm mangled, his right leg shattered. What medical jutsu in the entire world could mend that? Who in all the world could help Obito now? Perhaps not even the legendary Tsunade of the Sannin could heal such injuries... Was Kakashi crazy to hope and plead and beg whatever deities would listen? His breath hitched and his foot slipped on the next branch, just a little. His chakra control waned and he almost lost his footing again. The rain stung his eyes and pain stung his heart and everything was so fucked...</p><p>Kakashi's control snapped back as he pivoted, adjusting his posture and handling of Rin in mid air. He bounded from another set of branches and increased his speed even more. The rain continued to pour and the sky darkened further. Kakashi felt like the storm, the day, the mission, the village would all swallow him up. And yet he pressed on. For Rin, for Obito, for Minato-sensei, for Kushina, for Hiruzen-sama, hell even for Gai... He could not give up. Another flash of lightning, another deafening boom which seemed to challenge Kakashi's determination.</p><p>They were two hours outside Konoha when they were approached by a few Konoha jonin. Rin was conscious, if only barely, though she was still being carried by Kakashi. The young Hatake was hesitant as the three shinobi approached, but after the appropriate signals and verification, relief flooded his veins. He asked the nearest ninja what had happened; where were Obito and Minato-sensei; what was Obito's status? Questions flew from his tongue in rapid succession. Before even a single answer was uttered, Kakashi fell face-first to the ground with Rin still on his back.</p><p>When Kakashi next awoke, it was four days later and he was in a hospital bed in Konoha. The smell of sterilization hung think in the air. His brain was a fog and for a moment he wondered why he could feel his chakra draining rapidly. Then the deluge of memories and emotions hit him like an avalanche, and he clutched his left eye shut tightly. Without much thinking he threw his covers off and tried to stand, collapsing for his effort. His body ached all over but his mind would not stop running. He had to know... what was the fate of Team 7? As his thoughts began to nearly overwhelm him, a nurse opened his door and entered his room. The woman was startled at his disheveled state and the fact that he was awake. She called for another nurse and then approached Kakashi slowly.</p><p>"Take it easy, dear. Don't push yourself too hard..."</p><p>Her voice was soft and sweet, a voice obviously used to dealing with patients and all the work that entails. She was still somewhat young, mid to late twenties if Kakashi had to guess. Chestnut brown hair spilled down her back and over her shoulders. She reminded Kakashi a bit of Rin, which may have disarmed him more than he cared to admit. Her words finally washed over him and he took a deep breathe to calm his nerves.</p><p>"W-wha... hap'n-"</p><p>Kakashi's voice was a raspy mess, and he looked around the room for any hint of something to drink. A second woman entered the room as Kakashi searched in vain. Another nurse by the looks of it, though Kakashi could tell this was likely a med-nin by the way she moved. With her she carried a glass of water and what looked to be a sandwich and fruits of some sort. Kakashi grabbed the glass and gulped from it greedily. His lips, mouth, and throat thanked him profusely as he guzzled the water. Not a second after he drained the glass, he was back to asking questions.</p><p>"What happened to my team? Is Obito okay? Rin? Minato-sensei?"</p><p>The two nurses shared a look, and Kakashi read an array of emotions across their faces. The second nurse, this one with short auburn curls and freckle-dusted cheeks, ushered Kakashi back to his bed. Kakashi fought for a moment but soon gave in, exhaustion coursing through his body. The red-head asked the first nurse to fetch some more water and another pillow. As the first nurse left, the second nurse sat down at Kakashi's bedside with a torn expression on her face.</p><p>"Well, you see Hatake-san, it's really a mixed bag of news. Your teammate, Rin, is fine for the most part. She suffered severe chakra exhaustion and some strain to her coils, but she will recover..."</p><p>Here the medic-ninja paused, and Kakashi's hands unconsciously gripped the hospital blanket beneath him. It was scratchy, low thread count, had obviously been in use for years. Kakashi wanted to get lost in the details of it instead of asking his next question.</p><p>"And Obito?"</p><p>Her face grew pained, and she looked away from the young ninja.</p><p>"Well... I'm sorry, things aren't looking good. He's alive... if only barely..."</p><p>Kakashi's stomach clenched, but his heart allowed a brief bit of hope to blossom once more.</p><p>"Barely..." he whispered, "But barely is alive..."</p><p>The red-head gently placed her hand on Kakashi's arm, drawing his attention.</p><p>"He may live, yes, but he is in really bad shape. It would take a miracle of some magnitude for him to ever become a shinobi again if he does survive."</p><p>Kakashi looked away abruptly, a pang echoing in his heart. He wanted Obito to live, but it would literally destroy the young Uchiha if he could no longer be a ninja. For Obito, it may even be a fate worse than death. Kakashi briefly wondered if Obito would think his team did the right thing in saving him...</p><p>"And... Minato-sensei? Where is he?"</p><p>Kakashi's voice was still barely above a whisper. The nurse had to lean toward him a bit just to hear him properly. As she processed his question, a look of doubt flashed across her eyes and she frowned deeply. As she began to answer him, the first nurse re-entered the room with Kakashi's water and pillow.</p><p>"Your sensei refused to give up on Obito... He used the Hiraishin to bring him to a seal tag he had placed within Konoha Medical HQ. He was knocked out by the chakra drain and spent two days unconscious. When he woke up and learned of Obito's unstable condition, he vowed to find Lady Tsunade and left the village."</p><p>Kakashi's eyes widened at this revelation. With Minato-sensei on the case, perhaps Tsunade could be convinced to come back and help. Jiraiya's apprentice had a history with the Slug Sannin and would likely hold considerable sway with her. Kakashi drank his glass of water as he pondered over what he had been told. His attention faded from the nurses and hospital room as he became consumed by the "whats ifs" and the variables of the situation. If it was Tsunade... perhaps she could work some miracle. She had accomplished amazing feats in the past.</p><p>"-ke-san... take-san... Hatake-san!"</p><p>Kakashi snapped out of his musings to see a hand waving in his face.</p><p>"You really ought to rest now. It still isn't quite morning and there is nothing to be done for your other teammates at this time."</p><p>The red-head's words sank into Kakashi, seemingly forcing him to confront the exhaustion coursing through his body. He nodded his head at the nurses as he shifted and lied down. As his eye slid shut and his consciousness faded, he could feel one of the nurses tucking in his blanket. His last thoughts were of his team, and their future. He needed everyone to make it, so he could be better for them. They would all grow from this... this would be but a single ripple in the pond that was their lives... Kakashi desperately needed to believe that.</p><p>/-15 Year Later-/</p><p>Kakashi stood nearly motionless, lazily reading his newest copy of Icha Icha Paradise. Around him stood various jonin from throughout the village, crowded into the Hokage's office for the annual assigning of the teams. Kakashi tuned out the various mutterings and murmurings around him as he stealthily searched out the crowd for any familiar faces. Having been the last one to arrive, he had yet to see who all was vying for a team from this particular Academy. In the back he spied Sarutobi Asuma, and next to him Yuuhi Kurenai. Next to Kurenai was Mitarashi Anko, which surprised him a bit. The two briefly locked eyes, and Kakashi eye-smiled at her.</p><p>'Who would have thought Anko would want students?' he wondered.</p><p>Kakashi briefly shivered at the thought of Anko molding the youth of Konoha. If they survived her long enough to mold that is. Beside the three in the back, Kakashi also recognized the so called "Elite Tutor" Ebisu, the senbon-chewing Shiranui Genma, the kenjutsu expert Gekkou Hayate, and a smattering of other ninja Kakashi knew he should recognize but couldn't quite name.</p><p>'I feel a little bad, but Konoha is a huge village, so...'</p><p>Kakashi's musings were interrupted as the woman of the hour finally entered the room. The Godaime Hokage, Senju Tsunade, strode in to her office clad in her Hokage Robes and Hat. The gathered jonin snapped to attention in an instant. Tsunade stood behind her desk and looked over her assembled jonin.</p><p>"I'm going to cut to the chase," she said, her voice like iron, "You all are assembled here to vie for the teams produced by Konoha Ninja Academy Precinct 13. Teams 1, 2, 6, 8, 11, and 12 are all still in active rotation and cannot be selected."</p><p>Here she paused before looking directly at Kakashi, "Jonin Hatake, according to the Ninja Roster Statistics Office you hold the highest standing among the jonin gathered here. As such, you have first pick."</p><p>Kakashi felt dozens of gazes fall upon him, and he snapped his Icha Icha shut with a sigh, "I'd like to request Team 7, if you allow it, Hokage-sama."</p><p>Tsunade glanced down at the sheets spread on her desk, "Team 7: Uzumaki Naruto, Haruno Sakura, and Yoshimaru Oda. Request... granted!"</p><p>The silver-haired ninja heaved a small sigh of relief. He did not think there would be reason to deny his application, but one could never be too sure. Kakashi only half-listened as the same process repeated for several other jonin. Asuma was granted Team 10, the newest iteration of the Ino-Shika-Cho formation. Kurenai was granted the stewardship of Team 9, a mixed Tracking/Anti-Genjutsu unit composed of members of other important clans; the Aburame, Inuzuka, and Hyuuga. Ebisu landed Team 5, a team of clanless "all arounders" who finished toward the middle of their class. Genma requested Team 13, a team of "heavy hitters", Hayate requested Team 14, a weapon-orientated team, and Anko asked for Team 4, a team of "problem children" with little respect for authority. A few more teams were assigned and then the rest of the jonin were told to apply for another Precinct's team pool.</p><p>"Your teams will be waiting at Precinct 13. Try to pick them up promptly," Tsunade said at the end of the process, "Your choice of testing and passing them is up to you. I expect a written and verbal report on their assessments within an hour of them finishing. Dismissed!"</p><p>Without another word the jonin vanished from her office. All but one, that is.</p><p>"You requested I stay, Hokage-sama?" Kakashi asked.</p><p>Tsunade nodded as she took her place behind her desk once more, "Yes, Kakashi. As you know, Naruto is a special case."</p><p>Here the Godaime paused and briefly stared at the image of Namikaze Minato which rested on the wall. Her eyes lingered on the photo of her sensei, Sarutobi Hiruzen, as well. Kakashi simply watched his Hokage and waited.</p><p>"I know you requested Team 7 because Naruto is the son of your late sensei. I know I already approved your request, but I have a few questions..."</p><p>Kakashi shoved his hands in his pockets and cocked his head to the side, "And what might they be, Tsunade-sama?"</p><p>"First, do you intend to tell Naruto of his lineage?" She asked bluntly.</p><p>Kakashi quirked an eyebrow, perplexed, "Forgive me, but isn't that forbidden? I mean I know there isn't a Decree about it like his other little secret, however I was under the impression none of us were to tell him until he was eighteen or a jonin?"</p><p>Tsunade leaned back in her chair and crossed her arms, her steely gaze never leaving Kakashi's, "While that is true, you being the boy's sensei will give you ample time and opportunity to break that unofficial silence."</p><p>"I have no intention of doing so, Hokage-sama." Kakashi replied effortlessly.</p><p>While the idea had crossed his mind once or twice before, Kakashi had always known it was not his place to reveal to Naruto who his parents were. Nor did Kakashi feel he would ever be ready for such a situation. While he loved Minato-sensei and Kushina dearly, Kakashi had not been too deeply involved in their son's life thus far, due to both shinobi duties and emotional baggage. The distance between the two weighed on Kakashi. No, it was something for the Hokage to reveal to Naruto. Or perhaps Hiruzen-sama, the boy's caretaker and closest confidant.</p><p>"Good. Second, do you intend to coddle the boy or show him favoritism in any way?"</p><p>It was one perplexing question after another today.</p><p>"No, Hokage-sama, I do not. I don't have a record of favoritism within my teams, do I?" Kakashi replied somewhat sarcastically.</p><p>Tsunade grinnned, "Of course not. But you've never passed a team, so that isn't saying much."</p><p>Kakashi scratched the back of his head sheepishly as he smiled, though it was covered by his mask, "I guess you've got me there. I intend to train Naruto, or rather all of Team 7, as rigorously as I can. If they pass, I intend to turn them into fine ninja."</p><p>Tsunade nodded in satisfaction, "Good. Sarutobi-sensei has been taking it too easy on the gaki. He needs to be pushed. He should have been promoted to chunin by now, not genin!"</p><p>Kakashi reached for his Icha Icha book within his vest pocket, sensing the conversation was drawing to a close, "Is that all, Hokage-sama?"</p><p>"Hmm, for now Kakashi," Tsunade replied as she opened her desk to fetch something within, "Now, how about you share a glass of sake with me?"</p><p>As she finished her sentence Tsunade withdrew two cups and saucers, as well as a bottle of fine looking sake. She was already pouring a cup before Kakashi could do anything other than sweat-drop.</p><p>"It's ten in the morning, Tsunade-sama." Kakashi replied as he moved to leave.</p><p>Tsunade waved him off, "Bah! Fine then, more for me!"</p><p>The famed Copy-Ninja could only chuckled as he resumed reading on his way out.</p><p>Kakashi headed out of the Hokage Tower and began to walk around Konoha for nearly two hours. A large chunk of that time was spent at the gravestones of his sensei, Minato, and his wife, Kushina. Eventually he left and began to head for Precinct 13. The village was a cacophony around him, villagers bustling to and fro; civilians and shinobi alike hocking wares and buying goods, food stands with an amazing array of scents wafting outward, children running between people's legs as they played games. Kakashi, with his years of experience, was able to take it all in as he read and walked toward his destination. The memories of the various genin teams he had failed flashed through Kakashi's mind, and he wondered if this iteration of Team 7 would be any different. Kakashi would be lying if he didn't admit he wanted Uzumaki Naruto to pass the exam, though the silver-haired jonin would not allow those feelings to influence the test.</p><p>Kakashi felt the usual pang of regret when thinking about Naruto. He had yet to have much of an impact on the young boy's life. After failing Minato-sensei and Kushina on the night of the Kyuubi Incident, Kakashi had flung himself into his ANBU duties. It wasn't long after Tsunade was named the Hokage that she made Kakashi the ANBU Commander. He saw very little of Naruto, or anyone beside the Hokage and his ANBU agents for that matter. It was only five years ago or so that he stepped down from his position and joined the ranks of regular jonin once more. By that time Naruto was already eight years old, being raised and mentored by the retired Sandaime Hokage, Sarutobi Hiruzen. Over the last five years Kakashi had popped in and out of Naruto's life, becoming somewhat of an estranged, eccentric uncle to the boy. Something prevented Kakashi from ever allowing himself to get too close to Naruto, however, as the memories of Minato and Kushina's lifeless bodies still haunted him to this day.</p><p>The Copy-Ninja was brought out of his thoughts as he neared Academy Precinct 13, turning the last corner only to nearly run in to one of his dearest friends; Uchiha Obito. The Uchiha was wearing black shinobi sandals and pants, with white training tape wrapping from his ankles to mid shin. His long sleeve shirt was black as well, made of a special shinobi thread so it was both lightweight and durable. Over that he wore the standard green Konoha jonin vest with an Uchiha clan symbol embroidered on the back. His right hand and arm up to his shoulder was wrapped in training tape as well. His outfit was completed by a couple of green pouches strapped to each leg, as well as his black headband which was pulled down over his right eye. The two men chuckled at one another as they barely stopped their collision. Behind Obito, his genin team came to a stop as well.</p><p>"Kakashi! Fancy running in to you, eh?! Where are you wondering off to?" Obito asked cheerfully, while scratching the back of his head and grinning.</p><p>"Just heading to pick up my next team." Kakashi replied casually, face still buried in Icha Icha.</p><p>Kakashi subtly glanced behind Obito, giving his team a once over. Team 8, who had all graduated to genin roughly a year ago, was composed of Higurashi Tenten, Rock Lee, and Uchiha Sasuke. Tenten wore a long sleeved white blouse with red trim and a high collar, maroon colored hakama-style shinobi pants which were wrapped at her ankles with white training tape, black shinobi sandals, maroon finger-less gloves, a black shuriken holster, and a maroon headband tied around her forehead. She seemed annoyed that they had been interrupted and had an air of no-nonsense. Rock Lee was by her side, seemingly pestering her about something. The strange young boy wore a green spandex one piece made infamous by Maito Gai, the boy's first mentor. He sported a bowl cut, orange leg warmers, and white training tape on his arms, just like Gai. The youth was nearly the older man's clone. A few steps away from his two teammates was Uchiha Sasuke, scowling at his team's antics. The younger Uchiha was dressed in a pair of black shorts that stopped just above the knee, a black shirt made out of a similar shinobi material as Obito's, white arm guards with black trim, black shinobi sandals, a shuriken pouch strapped to his right leg, and a black headband tied around his left bicep. His dark black hair was tied into a small ponytail, with two bangs that framed the sides of his face. He was nearly the spitting image of Itachi, though Kakashi would never let the boy hear him say that.</p><p>"I heard you managed to snag Naruto-kun's team!" Obito remarked.</p><p>The last Hatake nodded, eye-smiling as he noticed Sasuke perk up at the direction of the conversation, "Yep, sure did. Tsunade-sama told me not to cut him any slack, so I will have to make the test extra hard I suppose."</p><p>Obito chuckled and slapped Kakashi's shoulder, "As if you have to make your test any harder, Kaka-baka!"</p><p>"Yosh! The spirit of your friendship burns so brightly Obito-sensei! You and Kakashi-san truly share in the springtime of youth!" Lee yelled as he watched his sensei and Kakashi interact.</p><p>"Don't interrupt sensei, baka!" Tenten cried as she grabbed Lee's arm and began to pull him out of Kakashi and Obito's personal space.</p><p>Kakashi laughed as he observed Team 8's antics, particularly the scowling form of Sasuke. There was a slight grin hidden in the corner of that scowl however, Kakashi noticed. Obito turned to his team and tried to wrangle them as all three started arguing.</p><p>The Copy-Ninja started to edge around the growing commotion, "Ma, ma, I've got to get going. I'll see you around Obito- sensei!"</p><p>Obito hollered an affirmative as he and his team continued on their way, drawing attention from passerby as they walked. For a moment Kakashi considered the fact that his new team may pass, and he could soon be going on missions with Obito and Team 8. A small shiver briefly went down his spine at the thought.</p><p>'Only time will tell, and it won't be long now...' Kakashi thought as he neared the entrance to Precinct 13.</p><p>Inside sat three thirteen-year old wannabe ninja, waiting to begin their lives as genin. Likely none of them had knowledge of the test Kakashi had in store. It was tradition not to reveal the secret to Academy students, after all. Some students were resourceful enough, or lucky enough, to find out beforehand, but the times were few and far between. Kakashi settled himself into position within the ceiling of the Academy, right above his new team. He shifted a tile out of his way and began his observations. Below him sat his three genin in an otherwise empty classroom. Kakashi was just a hair over 2 and a half hours late at this point. All the other teams from this Precinct had been picked up already. Over the next thirty minutes or so, Kakashi watched his newest team wait for him to arrive.</p><p>Uzumaki Naruto sat in the middle seat of the desk nearest the entrance of the classroom. He was leaned back in his chair, legs crossed and feet propped up on the desk. His hands were clasped behind his head, there was a grin on his face, and his eyes were closed. His black headband was wrapped around his forehead, helping to hold back his disheveled blonde locks. The young boy wore black shinobi sandals and dark burnt orange shinobi pants wrapped at the ankle with black training tape. Over a burnt orange shirt he wore a long sleeved jacket, mostly black with orange trim. Around his neck, Naruto sported a dark burnt orange scarf that Kakashi recognized from past memories of Kushina. Shuriken pouches were strapped to each leg. The young shinobi was projecting an air of relaxed confidence, which made sense considering he was this class' Rookie of the Year. Kakashi could still tell he was a bit nervous, however.</p><p>Haruno Sakura sat one desk over, her chair turned slightly away from Naruto's direction as the girl poured over a scroll set out in front of her. She seemed annoyed, but Kakashi wondered if it were at him, or Naruto. Tsunade had warned him that the two had a somewhat contentious rivalry. Sakura was second in every subject and every class, second only to Naruto. The young woman wore black shinobi sandals, black shinobi leggings, maroon shin guards and a maroon colored skirt that stopped just below her knees with a slit in each side. She also wore a black tank top with a maroon vest over it, black finger-less gloves with metal plates on the back, and maroon colored arm guards as well. Her pink hair was cut semi-short, though it was long enough to be pulled into a small pony-tail. Her maroon colored headband was tied around her right bicep, and a shuriken pouch was strapped to her left leg. In the entire thirty or so minutes that Kakashi observed her, she hardly looked up from her scroll except to throw the occasional withering glare at the young Uzumaki.</p><p>Yoshimaru Oda was standing at the front of the classroom, drawing what appeared to be obscene cartoons on the chalkboard. He was laughing and snorting to himself as he scrawled more and more doodles. Oda was dressed in blue shinobi sandals, dark green shinobi pants, two black shuriken pouches strapped to his hips, and a black shinobi headband that he was using as a belt. He also wore a long sleeve fishnet mesh shirt under a sleeve-less dark green vest that came up to cover his neck. His forearms were covered in black arm guards and his hands were covered in dark green finger-less gloves. A black sash tied his long black hair back behind his head in a ponytail. By the end of the thirty minutes Oda was attempting to juggle several pieces of chalk while doing a jig around the front of the classroom.</p><p>Uzumaki Naruto, Haruno Sakura, and Yoshimaru Oda. The new Team 7. Potentially, at least. Kakashi hadn't seen much to be inspired by. The three of them didn't give off any clear chemistry or sense of camaraderie, though Kakashi also didn't sense any true animosity. Even Sakura's glares toward Naruto lacked true heat. Kakashi sighed slightly, only the barest whisper crossing his lips. At that moment Naruto's eyes snapped open, looking directly in the Copy-Ninja's direction, only to see a normal looking ceiling tile where the last Hatake had just been. The door to the classroom opened and Kakashi stepped inside, drawing three sets of eyes to his smiling form. His students looked at him, he looked at his students.</p><p>The silence stretched for a few brief, awkward moments, before Kakashi calmly remarked, "I have to say, I'm not impressed. Meet me on the roof for our introductions."</p><p>Before any of the genin could react, Kakashi vanished in a gust of wind and leaves. He reappeared on the roof of the Academy, learning on the railing and looking out into part of the heart of Konoha. Within seconds, Naruto appeared behind him on the steps, casually laying back and observing the clouds. Neither said a word to the other, simply enjoying the sights and sounds of a day within the village. Within a couple minutes they were joined by Sakura, and shortly after by Oda. Naruto sat up as his teammates took a seat on the steps to either side of him. Kakashi took another minute to survey the villagers rushing about on the street below before he turned around to address his potential students.</p><p>"So... I have a few things to tell you all, but before all that, let's do some introductions. Pinkie, you first."</p><p>Sakura's hand shot into the air, years of Academy classes leaving it as muscle memory at this point, "Sensei, shouldn't you go first to show us how you want it done?"</p><p>Kakashi crossed his arms, put his hand to his chin, then shrugged, "Sure, I guess that works too. I'd like you to tell me your name, likes, dislikes, hobbies, and dreams for the future. So, my name is Hatake Kakashi. My likes are my teammates and dango. My dislikes... well... My hobbies, those aren't really to be discussed with children. As for dreams for the future... I'd like to help my teammates complete their dreams."</p><p>The three students stared at their sensei with equal looks of disbelief. They had learned almost nothing about the man save for his name. Kakashi pointed at Sakura again, giving the girl her queue.</p><p>Sakura blushed slightly as the attention shifted to her, "Erm, uh, I'm Haruno Sakura. My likes are my best friend Ino, learning new things, gardening, and my mother's anmitsu. My dislikes are slackers, loudmouths, and dang-... err, my hobbies are gardening with Ino and her mom Kiku, and training. My dreams for the future... ahh, I... would rather not say."</p><p>Kakashi nodded as Sakura fell silent. Everyone was entitled to their privacy, besides, he'd be a hypocrite if he pried. Though he did wonder if the girl had been about to say she disliked dango... He pointed to Oda next, filing the dango thing away for later.</p><p>The dead last of the class scratched the back of his neck as he grinned sheepishly, "Heh, my name is Oda! Yoshimaru Oda! I like spicy yakitori! Playing Hanafuda, or Cho-han! And chasing the beautiful up and coming kunoichi all over Konoha! My dislikes, well, mostly cocky bastards like Naruto! My hobbies are playing Hanafuda and Cho-han, and playing shogi with Shikamaru. Baka always beats me though... My dreams for the future are to be a ninja more well known than the Legendary Sannin, and to spread the Yoshimaru clan name around the world!"</p><p>Kakashi gave Oda a rather calculating look. Perhaps somewhere under that girl-chasing, happy-go-lucky slacker persona was a young ninja with some real ambition and potential. Kakashi knew if the team passed, Oda had a long and hard road ahead of him. Finally, the silver-haired ninja pointed at Naruto.</p><p>The young Uzumaki smirked and gave a peace sign, "Yo! I'm Uzumaki Naruto! My likes include Hiru-jiji, monkeys, and being a ninja! Oh, and ramen! My dislikes are thieves, clowns, and noisy second-bests. My hobbies are training with Hiru-jiji, hanging out with Shikamaru and Choji, and playing the shamisen. My dreams for the future... I want to become the greatest Hokage to ever live! Stronger than the Godaime, faster than the Yondaime, wiser than the Sandaime, smarter than the Nidaime, and more well known than even the Shodaime!"</p><p>The other three looked on as Naruto finished his exclamation, flashing them all a double thumbs up. Sakura and Oda looked at Naruto in surprise, having not heard his Hokage rant in a couple weeks. Kakashi quirked an eyebrow and chuckled. Quite the introduction.</p><p>"Okay, well done. Now, on to the next step. Tomorrow morning we will be meeting at Training Ground 9 to have the real Genin Acceptance Test. Arrive at 6 a.m. on the dot, and don't eat breakfast. You'll definitely puke." He said.</p><p>The genin stared at Kakashi in shock, all three sets of eyes wide. Kakashi smirked internally, thankful that Naruto's surprise seemed genuine. He was glad that in the boy's interactions with Hiruzen, Tsunade, Rin, Obito, and occasionally Jiraiya and Kakashi, none of them had revealed the deception of the genin tests.</p><p>"S-sensei! That can't be true!" Sakura exclaimed as she stood in protest.</p><p>Oda quickly joined in with her, "Yeah sensei! We passed already, see my headband!"</p><p>Kakashi simply quirked a brow as Oda kept rapidly pointing to his forehead protector. The jonin face-palmed and shook his head.</p><p>"That doesn't change anything," Kakashi replied, "The fact of the matter is, the true Genin Acceptance exams are given by the team's jonin sensei. Each sensei administers the test as they see fit, and, being blunt, only one in three teams will pass. The rest will be sent to Remedial Academy or quit being ninja."</p><p>The gravity of the situation set in for the genin, and each of their faces fell. Oda looked to Kakashi as if he might vomit. To the Copy-Ninja's surprise, even Naruto looked a bit paler, though the boy was doing an admiral job of appearing to keep his cool. Sakura was chewing on her bottom lip and appeared ready to ask a million and one questions. Kakashi took that as his moment to make an escape.</p><p>"Training Ground 9. 6 a.m. No breakfast!" He reiterated, then vanished from the rooftop.</p><p>He reappeared on a nearby shop's roof, and quickly made his way to his favorite dango shop, Daru's Divine Dumplings. He had to admit he was riding a good mood from scaring his would-be genin. After only a few minutes of rooftop-hopping, Kakashi arrived at Daru's and parted the curtain to enter. The familiar smells of the shop hit his nose, the cacophony of customers hit his ears, and a slow grin spread across Kakashi's face. The sweet aroma of Daru's famous mitarashi sauce simply couldn't be beaten. Speaking of mitarashi... Mitarashi Anko was seated at the bar stool nearest the entrace, enthusiastically munching on several skewers of dango. Seeing an open stool next to her, Kakashi decided to take a seat.</p><p>"Ma, ma, how's it going Mitarashi-san?" The last Hatake asked as he put his copy of Icha Icha away. Kakashi locked eyes with Daru, and with a few quick hand signals he placed his order.</p><p>"None of that formal shit Kakashi," Anko grumbled as she munched on another skewer, "You know I don't play those games."</p><p>"Ah, yes, how I could a forget, " a chuckle escaped Kakashi's lips as he replied, "Unless it's the Hokage everyone else can pretty much fuck off, right?"</p><p>Anko paused briefly, looked at Kakashi out of the corner of her eyes, and grinned, "That sounds about right Cyclops!"</p><p>Kakashi eye-smiled at the jonin beside him as his food arrived, "So, Anko, I saw you at the Team Assignment meeting earlier. Scar your team for life yet?"</p><p>The Snake Mistress paused mid bite, the last remaining dango ball on her current skewer resting between her teeth as she looked at Kakashi. Her eyebrow quirked briefly, and Kakashi saw something flit across her eyes but within a second it was gone. Before Kakashi could question what he saw, an annoyed look plastered across the purple-haired woman's face.</p><p>"Those lousy little shits," She griped, "Weren't worth the cloth to make their headbands, stupid bastards. Probably won't even make it out of Remedial!"</p><p>Kakashi blinked somewhat owlishly, "You already gave them your test? I would have thought you would draw it out. Make them really sweat."</p><p>Anko shook her head, "Not worth it. Why beat around the bush? If they had passed I would have had all the time in the world to scare the piss out of them. Too bad they were absolute fucking clowns."</p><p>Anko did a double take as she finished speaking, looking at Kakashi's plate. Somehow, without her being aware, half of his dango skewers had already been eaten. The Copy-Ninja was casually flicking one of the empty skewers around the fingers of his left hand.</p><p>"Hmm, that's a way to do it I suppose," Kakashi remarked with mirth, reaching for his next skewer of dango, "Though I have to admit, I can't help but let my genin squirm a bit."</p><p>"Heh, maybe you're not as stuck up as people make you out to be, Cyclops." Anko quipped back, subtly focusing her attention to try to catch Kakashi as he ate the next skewer. Perhaps, after years, she would see him with his mask off.</p><p>The silver-haired jonin shook his head at the remark, nonplussed by his reputation around the village. He began to move the dango toward his mouth, and Anko leaned forward unconsciously, the dango in her own hand long forgotten. At that exact moment, a customer across the shop sneezed loudly, startling the person beside them. That person jumped and bumped into Daru, who had been walking by with a stack of dirty dishes. This caused Daru to stumble a step, two, three, before he careened toward the ground. The large stack of dishes flew through the air, and unbelievably... somehow... some way... the dishes blocked Every... Single... Bite... When the last dish crashed to the floor, Kakashi's mask was up and the dango gone from his plate. Anko hadn't seen a damn thing.</p><p>"B-but... wha-, what the fuck was that?!" She yelled as she pointed her dango skewer at Kakashi, who was wiping the sides of his masked face with a napkin in what Anko could only assume was a savage display of smart-assery.</p><p>Kakashi looked at Anko, perplexed, "What do you mean, Anko?"</p><p>Anko just turned with a huff, crossing her arms, "Che, forget it!"</p><p>The masked jonin shrugged before leaving his payment on the bar in front of his plate. He gave a small salute to Daru, who waved back with a smirk. He was nearly ready to Shunshin away when Anko grabbed his forearm.</p><p>"How's about we go get some drinks at TRK, eh, Kakashi?" She asked with a sly grin.</p><p>Kakashi glanced down at her hand, then back up, "Ma, ma, I have precious genin to shepard in the morning."</p><p>"C'mon, Cyclops, live a little!" Anko exclaimed, slapping Kakashi on the back, "Besides, it's not like you're gonna pass the damn team anyway!"</p><p>At that Anko burst into boisterous laughter, obviously pleased at what she thought was a hilarious comment. Kakashi considered her comment, and the image of Naruto's introduction from the rooftop materialized in his mind's eye. Somehow Kakashi doubted he would have the usual easy time of it during his test tomorrow. Still, the woman was persuasive, and Kakashi didn't really need to be to Training Ground 9 until nine or ten in the morning... Anko gave Kakashi an expectant look, and the silver-haired shinobi hesitated another moment. She wiggled one of her eyebrows, and his resolve finally broke.</p><p>"Alright, Anko, alright. I'll go." He said, hoping somewhere in the back of his mind that he wouldn't come to regret this decision.</p><p>The Rusty Kunai, or TRK as most ninja of Konoha referred to the bar, was bustling with activity. Many shinobi and kunoichi alike were out in force to celebrate various graduations and promotions. As soon as they arrived Anko had dragged Kakashi to a table in the back with a cadre of familiar faces; Kurenai, Asuma, Genma, Kotetsu, Izumo, Aoba, Ibiki, Hana, and about three or four people Kakashi didn't recognize or care to remember. The group had pushed together several tables and dominated the back of the bar. Kakashi ended up seated between Anko and Asuma near the end of one side of the table, which suited him just fine.</p><p>"Kakashi! Surprise, surprise," Asuma yelled over the din as the Copy-Ninja sat next to him, "With Anko no less? Wonders never cease."</p><p>Kurenai discretely elbowed Asuma in his side from her seat to his right, "Stop it, Asuma. Leave them be."</p><p>Kakashi chuckled as he waved them off, "Ma, ma, Asuma, it's nothing of the sort. Anko here just needed an escort from Daru's due to some deadly assassins after her. Once I was here, I decided to stay."</p><p>Laughter burst from Anko's lips as both Asuma and Kurenai deadpanned at Kakashi's lie.</p><p>"Ha! You couldn't protect a ham sandwich from a stray mutt, much less protect me Cyclops!" Anko yelled before she downed her first shot of the night.</p><p>This time Asuma and Kurenai deadpanned at Anko's response, completely unfamiliar with her turn of phrase. Asuma also did a bit of a double take at the fact that Anko already had two empty shot glasses in front of her. Kakashi likewise noticed, and wondered where the shots had even come from. He was distracted from his thoughts on the matter as several others at the table called out to him in greeting. He politely returned their calls and the next twenty or so minutes were spent juggling a few small talk conversations between himself, Ibiki, Hana, and Kotetsu as they all caught up a bit. Asuma, Kurenai, and Anko continued their own conversation, continually poking fun at Kakashi along the way. It wasn't often the silver-haired jonin ventured out to the bars with any of them, after all. Eventually, inevitably, talk turned to teams and how exactly the up and coming ninja were performing. Kakashi was surprised to learn everyone at the table who had taken a team today had already either passed or failed them.</p><p>"Really? All of you?" He asked, drawing a snicker from Asuma and a very heavy eye roll from Kurenai.</p><p>"What do you expect, Kakashi?" The Yuuhi heiress asked in exasperation, "You are three hours late to everything!"</p><p>Asuma chimed in, "Yeah, that's really gotta put you behind! No wonder you haven't given your test yet!"</p><p>Kakashi shrugged halfheartedly, "Ma, it has seemed to work out for me so far?"</p><p>Anko, Asuma, and Kurenai all stared at the last Hatake blankly for a few moments, causing the jonin to scratch the back of his neck and chuckle.</p><p>"Alright, so let's hear it," Kakashi implored, looking around the table, "Who passed? Who failed? Anyone promising?"</p><p>Anko grabbed a large bottle of sake that had just been delivered to the table, pouring everyone a round. A quick chorus of "Kanpai!" rang out and they tossed back the sweet alcoholic beverage.</p><p>"As I already told ol' Maskface over here, the brats I got, Team 4, were complete ass. Fuck thinking about teamwork, these brats could barely dress themselves in the morning! What are they teaching at the Academy these days?" Anko ranted as she poured everyone another round of sake.</p><p>Asuma guffawed at the Snake Mistress and her monologue, slamming back the cup of sake she offered, "I don't know who you got, Anko, but I wasn't disappointed. My team passed. Team 10, the newest generation of the Ino-Shika-Cho formation."</p><p>Kurenai sipped at her sake, taking her night slow, "I was lucky as well. My team, Team 9, was able to work together to escape one of my illusions, track down a 'hostage' I took, and nearly saved the hostage from me."</p><p>"Nearly?" Kakashi asked with a cocked brow.</p><p>" Nearly." Kurenai replied with a smirk, "But they did do well enough in my opinion to pass. They showed they can work together. They will be a worthy and formidable tracking and reconnaissance team soon enough."</p><p>Kakashi looked out across the table, casting looks at Hana, Aoba, and Genma, "And you guys? Any luck?"</p><p>Hana gave a grin which showed off her sharp canines, "Nope! I picked up Team 10 from Precinct 9 and they failed. They all chose to go to Remedial though!"</p><p>Aoba shook his head, "I chose not to take a new team this year. I'll be leaving on a long term mission soon and need to focus on training and preparing for it."</p><p>Kakashi nodded in understanding before turning his attention to Genma, who shrugged, "What can I say? I didn't see anything worth passing. Team 13 were supposed to be heavy hitters but they were mostly all bark and no bite."</p><p>"Guess that sounds about right." Asuma remarked with a chuckle.</p><p>At that moment a bartender walked up to the table with a round of shots. Kakashi eyed Anko as she grabbed the platter of drinks from the bartender with a manic looking grin. The Snake Mistress quickly doled out the mystery shots to everyone before raising her glass expectantly. The Copy-Ninja looked down at the shot, which seemed to glow in its glass, and briefly wondered if he was making a wise choice. Everyone else at the table lifted their shot glass before looking to Kakashi. His cheeks were already flush from the sake earlier, and the expectant eyes of his comrades weighed heavier on him than he cared to admit. So he took up the mystery shot and gave a "Kanpai" with everyone. And as always, he somehow managed to take the shot without anyone of the gathered ninja seeing him without his mask. Five hours, seven shots and four bottles of sake later, he would finally come to regret his decision to leave Daru's with Anko... Regret that lasted the entire twenty minutes it took Kakashi to get home from The Rusty Kunai and promptly pass out in his bed until nine in the morning.</p><p>With a groan the silver-haired ninja rose from his bed to begin his day. A quick trip to the kitchen for some much needed water, then into the bathroom for a hasty shower, and finally back in to the kitchen for breakfast. Kakashi prepared some steamed rice and miso soup, as well as some toast with strawberry jam and sliced bananas and strawberries on top. By the time he was finished with his self care routine, the headache which had tormented him was largely reduced to a dull throb. Munching on the last bit of his toast, Kakashi glanced at his clock; just before ten. Pretty late, even for his standards. He would have to make it up to his team, if they passed. Heaving a sigh, Kakashi locked up his apartment and began the journey to Training Ground 9 to meet his team. Being nearly four hours late already, Kakashi decided it would be apt to simply head straight to the training ground. As he made his way across the rooftops of Konoha, he pondered over just how hungry his genin team must be by now if they had followed his instructions not to eat breakfast.</p><p>'They may pass out if they didn't eat dinner last night as well for whatever reason...' Kakashi thought, 'This may be easier than I thought after all.'</p><p>The Copy-Ninja arrived in Training Ground 9 to the sight of a team obviously bored out of their minds. Sakura sat crossed legged, leaning against a tree on the outskirts of the training ground's clearing. She had a scroll in her hand that she appeared to be reading, but on closer inspection her grip was slightly slack and she looked to be nodding off. Oda was standing at the tree to the right of the one Sakura was dozing on. His right hand clutched at his stomach in apparent discomfort, while his left hand gripped a kunai which he used to carve into the tree's bark. From Kakashi's vantage point in the trees, the carving seemed to be some sort of crude etching of a stick figure being trampled by pigs. The young Yoshimaru clan heir seemed visibly agitated, and Kakashi knew it had been a long time since he had eaten.</p><p>Naruto, on the other hand, was once again exuding his relaxed and confident aura. The young boy was lying on the ground on his side, with his head propped up by one of his hands. He was lying to the left of Sakura, idly watching both her and Oda. In front of him was a patch of ground with obvious signs of a recent fire. It was somewhat warm out, so it was unlikely Naruto needed the fire for warmth. Tucking that information into the back of his mind, Kakashi thought it was perhaps time to reveal himself to his wayward students. Deciding to have a little fun, Kakashi appeared leaning on the tree just to Sakura's left, reading Icha Icha nonchalantly. In an instant Naruto was on his feet, Sakura jumped and dropped her scroll, and Oda was spluttering and pointing at Kakashi indignantly.</p><p>"Pf.. tch... wh-what the hell, Kakashi-sensei?!" Oda yelled, "Where have you been?!"</p><p>Sakura stood as well, picking up her scroll as she did, before glaring fiercely at Kakashi, "Yeah, what gives, sensei? You told us to meet here at 6!"</p><p>Kakashi did not miss the stress Sakura put in the word sensei, "Ma, ma, forgive me my would-be students. I got lost on the road of life, then a black cat crossed my path... turns out, it was a purple snake actually."</p><p>The three genin stared at Kakashi, all of them with varying degrees of disbelief. An awkward silence hung in the air a moment, before being shattered by Oda's ferociously growling stomach. The boy's teammates each shot him a look, Naruto's look somewhat smug, Sakura's look somewhat worried, and Kakashi's look clearly triumphant. He clapped his hands together, and eye-smiled at his students when he had regained their attention. With that, he pulled out two silver bells.</p><p>"Okay, so, here is how this is gonna work," Kakashi began, "I have these two bells. To pass the test, you must claim one of them from me. Come at me with everything you've got, and with intent to kill, or you'll never take one of these bells or have what it takes to be a ninja of Konohagakure no Sato."</p><p>The tension in the area ratcheted up several degrees, and Sakura asked the question on all three potential genin's minds, "But, Kakashi-sensei, there are only two bells... does that mean..."</p><p>Kakashi grinned widely as an ominous aura began to appear around him, "That's right Sakura... only two of you will pass! The one who fails will be sent to Remedial or dropped from the program. So if I were you, I wouldn't hesitate!"</p><p>A cold sweat erupted across each member of Team 7 as they each looked between themselves, Kakashi, and the bells hanging from his hand. The jonin pulled a small timer from a pouch on his leg, set the time for two hours, and set it on a rock near the edge of the training ground.</p><p>"To make it even more interesting," Kakashi continued, "There will be a two hour time limit. Not only will the one who does not manage to get a bell fail the test, they will be tied to one of those posts over there and denied lunch while the rest of us eat."</p><p>Kakashi looked each one of his students in the eyes, observing all the different signs and tells of both their nervousness and determination. Each one appeared ready to conquer their nerves and attempt to take him on. But would they see through the ruse and be able to work together as a team? Would there be any chemistry there, any camaraderie? Kakashi's hand flicked the switch on his timer.</p><p>"Begin!"</p><p>/-/</p><p>A/N: And there you have it. A new story. A not quite so new author.</p><p>It's been years since I've posted anything to this website. A lot has changed. A lot. The Naruto series, which is the primary universe I used to create fanfiction in, wasn't even over when I last wrote and posted stories. I doubt I have very many fans still subscribed, or following, or probably even reading these stories on this site anymore. If there are any old fans reading this, welcome back, and I'm sorry for never finishing my other stories. After many file losses, computer crashes, and moves, I do not have a single file for any of my stories like Snapped, or A Tortured Soul. However, I do have the renewed will to explore the Naruto universe, and thus this new story was born.</p><p>To new readers, welcome! Hopefully you enjoyed the first chapter of A Single Ripple. As should be obvious by now the premise is "What if Obito had been saved by Minato instead of left for dead?" How would that ultimately lead to changes across the Naruto universe? What exactly would change, and what would stay the same? So that's where we begin.</p><p>As a heads up, yes the main bulk of this story's chapters will be from Naruto's perspective, or at least include bits of it. Other characters will also appear front and center to drive aspects of the story on. It felt fitting to start the story with Kakashi, so that's what I did. If another character fits the narrative to drive the story on, their perspective may take center stage for a bit. It all depends.</p><p>One main thing I am changing from Canon for sure is Kaguya and the Otsutsuki clan. I will tell you here and now, they do not exist within my universe. I truly did not care for the chakra-eating aliens in the actual Naruto series and I will not be including them in my story. Yes, the Jyuubi still existed. Madara and Hashimara still existed. Indra and Ashura still existed. The Sage of the Six Paths still existed. But their stories will be different, and the ending of this story will be very different from Canon as such. The mysteries of the Sage, the origin of the Biju, and the true nature of chakra and the beginning of ninja is still shrouded in mystery in my universe. Keep reading if you want to find out more.</p><p>One last thing... This story is an AU, yes, but it will contain large parts of the same story beats as the Naruto series. I plan to go from Bell Test all the way to the end of Shipuuden. I will be adding in my own additional arcs as well, and the arcs from the original source WILL be changed up. Expect the unexpected. Clearly many changes have already built up, as seen in this chapter.</p><p>So, like, subscribe, follow, review, share, do all the things. Please. And thank you.</p><p>Until next time,</p><p>KnS</p><p>P.S. Just to let you know, my Author's Notes will always be at the bottom. I want you guys to be able to jump right in to the chapter rather than be assaulted by an A/N right off the bat.</p>
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<a name="section0002"><h2>2. The Bell Test</h2></a>
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    <p>/-Training Ground 9, Konohagakure no Sato-/</p><p>Uzumaki Naruto, potential genin and aspiring future Hokage, strode into the main clearing of Training Ground 9 at 6 a.m. sharp. The smell of dirt and leaves and a certain musk of the wilderness hit his nose, and his mind strove to discern as many of them from the others as he could. His crystal blue eyes scanned the clearing from his right to his left and back again, a dozen lessons taught to him by Sarutobi Hiruzen echoing through his mind as he observed his surroundings. He tasted a hint of cinnamon on the air just before he noticed Sakura sitting off to his right, already entrenched in a scroll about something or other. Oda was nowhere to be found, and while Naruto wasn't exactly a sensor-type shinobi, he was confident the boy wasn't hiding anywhere around or near the clearing. As for Kakashi... well, Naruto wasn't cocky enough to think that he would be able to spot the silver-haired ninja if the man didn't want to be seen.</p><p>Sakura glanced up from her scroll as she finally took notice of Naruto's presence, "You barely made it on time, Naruto-yaro! Where's Oda?"</p><p>Naruto's brows knit together as he gave Sakura a look of confusion, "How the hell should I know? I didn't see him on the way here at all."</p><p>As Sakura scoffed and returned to her scroll, Naruto extended his senses out and tried to probe for Kakashi. The young Uzumaki didn't expect the jonin to show up yet, but he couldn't be positive. The silver-haired ninja had a reputation for being two to three hours late to everything. However, since Naruto being late could have potentially gotten him disqualified or shipped to Remedial, he made the effort to appear on time. A slow, twisted grin spread across Naruto's face as he began scanning the training ground once more. The one positive that Naruto could discern from the three hour wait for his sensei, was the time could be used wisely to set the upcoming battlefield in his favor.</p><p>'Ya know, if Kakashi doesn't have us fight here, or the exam isn't even a fight at all, this may end up being a waste of time and energy...' Naruto thought to himself as he ventured toward the treeline of Training Ground 9.</p><p>"Hey, where are you going?!" Sakura yelled from behind him.</p><p>Naruto looked over his shoulder as he continued on, "To take some... precautions!"</p><p>As soon as he had crossed the treeline and was out of Sakura's line of sight, Naruto created a gaggle of clones, using the Kage Bunshin no jutsu with a single cross seal. He quickly split the clones into three groups, giving each a sealed scroll of a different color; one blue, one red, one green. Then Naruto directed each group to certain areas around Training Ground 9. Meanwhile the real Naruto unfurled his own scroll, looking down to see four seal arrays spread across the paper. One by one he unsealed each array; the first seal revealed an assortment of nets of various sizes as well as a wooden spring-loaded trap, the second seal revealed several spools of ninja wire as well as dozens of pouches of kunai and shuriken, the third seal revealed several stacks of explosive tags, smoke bombs, flash bombs, and a blowgun with a handful of darts, and finally the fourth seal revealed a gift he had recently received from the Sandaime Hokage. He quickly and methodically set up the series of traps for his area, settled the supplies he needed on his person into his pouches and pockets, and then picked up Hiruzen's gift. Naruto would take everything the old man had taught him and put it to use here today, that he promised. With a sigh, he disappeared back in to the forest.</p><p>Over an hour later, Naruto exited the forested area of the training ground and returned to the main clearing to see Oda pestering Sakura. His female teammate was in nearly the same place he had left her, though the scroll she had been reading was lying on the ground next to where she now stood. She waved her arms and yelled something at Oda, but from across the training ground Naruto could barely hear her. The young Uzumaki watched the two argue as he approached, and soon it became clear that it was about Kakashi's absence.</p><p>"It's past seven-thirty! He probably isn't even gonna show up! Sakura, can he automatically fail us? Is there, like, a rule for that?" Naruto heard Oda exclaim.</p><p>"Oda, shut up! I don't know if there is a rule! I don't know where Kakashi is! Stop pestering me, baka!" Sakura shouted as she swatted him across the back of the head.</p><p>The squabbling teammates finally noticed Naruto's presence as the young Uzumaki began unrolling a scroll nearby. Oda, now nursing the back of his head where Sakura had hit him, watched on in feigned disinterest. Sakura made no attempt to hide her own interest, as she closely watched Naruto unseal what looked to be the items necessary for a fire. Some stones, firewood, tinder, kindling, a metal grate, and what appeared to be several thick pieces of meat. Sakura also spied a mix of red and green peppers, though she couldn't identify the exact variety from where she was. Oda and Sakura had forgotten their argument, had even forgotten that Kakashi hadn't arrived. Instead they stood and watched in slight puzzlement as Naruto crafted a fire pit, lit a fire, and began cooking the meat and peppers.</p><p>Sakura was the first to break down and approach, "Naruto-yaro! What are you doing? We aren't supposed to eat! Kakashi-sensei said so!"</p><p>The blond-haired genin looked up at his perturbed teammate, brushing off her usual insult and smirking at her, "Ne, ne, calm down chuko! You may not want to eat, but I'm not gonna chance blowing this test because I was hungry."</p><p>Naruto watched Sakura closely, noticing her hand clench and a vein in her forehead throb as she registered his insult. His favorite insult, at that. Chuko, or "second best". It never failed to get under the pinkette's skin. Even now her clenched fist began to shake a bit as she struggled to restrain herself from lashing out at Naruto.</p><p>"Naruto-teme! You have to listen to what Kakashi-sensei said, especially if we do too!" Oda butted in, having finally dropped his act and made his way over to join his teammates.</p><p>"Che, as if," Naruto responded as he flipped each of the three pieces of meat on his makeshift grill, "Hiru-jiji taught me to think for myself, and while orders are important sometimes one must throw them to the winds."</p><p>Both of Naruto's teammates glared at him as their stomachs growled. The meat began to sizzle, and the smell would soon become overwhelming. Sakura could already smell the aroma of the peppers mixing in as well, as Naruto began to work on cooking them too.</p><p>"A ninja doesn't break the rules!" Oda yelled, turning with a huff and crossing his arms across his chest.</p><p>"What kind of meat is that?" Sakura asked quizzically.</p><p>Oda looked over at Sakura sharply, surprise written on his face. Naruto smiled up at the girl.</p><p>"It's a boar. I just killed and sealed it yesterday! Damn near as fresh as it gets!" The blond-haired proclaimed proudly, jabbing his thumb to his chest as he boasted.</p><p>As the intoxicating smell of the meat and peppers became more and more powerful by the second, Naruto could see Sakura's resolve crumbling. Oda too looked as if he might steal a piece right off the grate. The last Uzumaki could see that one more small push might be in order.</p><p>"Look, I don't know Kakashi-sensei super well," He started, "But he has a reputation for being pretty late to everything. We could be waiting another hour or even two before he gets here..."</p><p>Oda and Sakura shared a look, both of them unsure of already disobeying something their sensei had told them to do. Sakura was a stickler for rules generally, and Oda, while the dead last of the class, wasn't really a rule-breaker either. He didn't generally goof off or get in trouble in class, he simply wasn't very good at his ninja studies and didn't apply himself hard enough. Still, he followed the rules. Naruto wondered briefly if either of his teammates would take him up on his offer. He had already begun cooking them each a piece, just in case.</p><p>The young Yoshimaru heir was the first to decide, turning to his female teammate, "I really don't think we should, Sakura. What if sensei is watching? What if he fails us? What if this is part of the test?"</p><p>Sakura looked between Oda and Naruto, then to the nearly finished food sizzling and steaming on the grate. She watched as Naruto unsealed the final array in his scroll, revealing 3 sets of some simple plates, forks, and knives. The blonde-haired boy looked up at them both expectantly. Sakura bit her bottom lip, and for a moment Naruto thought it was kind of cute.</p><p>'What? Where did that come from?'</p><p>Naruto was pulled from his musings by Sakura speaking, "Okay, I'll take a piece... just one though! The smallest one! And no peppers!"</p><p>"Are you serious, Sakura?!" Oda yelled, throwing his hands up in disbelief, "You of all people are gonna break the rules?!"</p><p>The black-haired boy stormed off toward the edge of the clearing, grumbling the whole way.</p><p>"What's his problem?" Naruto wondered aloud as he handed Sakura her plate.</p><p>"I don't kn- hey! I said no peppers!" Sakura responded as she looked down at her plate.</p><p>Naruto laughed at her as he began to prepare his own plate, "C'mon, c'mon, it's only one! You gotta try my famous stuffed peppers!"</p><p>Sakura quirked a brow at her teammate's remark, using the fork he had given her to roll the grilled pepper around on her plate a bit. The young Haruno was not a fan of spicy foods usually, but a stuffed pepper sounded interesting.</p><p>"Famous, huh? Among who, exactly? Shikamaru and Choji?" The pink-haired genin asked as she began cutting into the pepper. A mix of rice, vegetables, and cheese poured out, steaming hot.</p><p>"Tch, yeah right! Those two hardly ever eat vegetables!" Naruto said with a laugh, "No, more like Hiru-jiji, Konohamaru, Obito, Rin and sometimes even Baa-chan!"</p><p>Sakura took a couple bites of the stuffed pepper before responding, "This Hiru-jiji you keep mentioning... I think you also said Hiruzen at one point... You can't possibly mean the Sarutobi Hiruzen, can you?"</p><p>Naruto didn't speak for a moment, caught up in both getting his own plate together as well as watching Oda carve something into a tree off in the distance. For a moment Sakura wondered if Naruto had heard her properly.</p><p>Finally, he scratched the back of his neck sheepishly and said, "Ah, yeah, actually it is. It isn't really common knowledge but he has been taking care of me. I'm not supposed to really say anything, but lately I've been slipping up."</p><p>Sakura was a bit perplexed by the boy's response, but didn't really know what to say in return. This was the longest civil conversation the two had ever had, really, and the young girl was unsure how to navigate these waters. Usually the two just insulted each other and drove the other to try harder to be the best in class. The Haruno heir focused instead on cutting up her piece of meat into manageable bits. She took her first bite and nearly moaned aloud at the taste. Naruto had clearly marinated or seasoned the boar meat in some way, and it tasted amazing.</p><p>"Wow," Sakura mumbled around her mouthful of food, "This is way better than I expected it would be."</p><p>Naruto looked up from his plate and paused in cutting his piece of meat, genuinely surprised by the comment, "Uh, thanks, I guess?"</p><p>The two then sat in a semi comfortable silence, finishing their meat and stuffed peppers. Despite starting after her, Naruto finished his meal first. He sealed the third meal, the one Oda had refused, back into his scroll, along with his metal grate which he had let cool after pulling from the fire. Naruto then took some dirt and smothered the fire, putting it out. Sakura finished her meal and returned his plate and utensils to him. She bowed and thanked him for the meal, which once again surprised the boy. As he finished cleaning up, she returned to her spot by the tree and took out the scroll she had originally been reading. Shooting a look toward Oda, Naruto now saw that the boy was etching some kind of doodle into the tree bark. The young genin was clearly still agitated, and Naruto knew that he would likely stay that way until he got some food in him. The young Uzumaki took up a spot to the left of Sakura, lying down on his side and propping his head up with his left hand. Looking up at the sky, and the position of the sun, Naruto knew it was a little after nine o'clock. Hopefully Kakashi would be there any time now...</p><p>Over an hour later Kakashi had still not arrived. Naruto was becoming a bit agitated, as four hours was quite a long time to make someone wait. The three genin had, not for the first time, wondered between themselves if this was all somehow part of the test. Were they supposed to track their sensei down? Was he just being his usual tardy self or was this somehow a challenge? Even Naruto was unsure of the answer. He gazed idly at his teammates, content to observe them until his sensei arrived. Oda's etching made Naruto chuckle, as he was pretty sure the stick figure was supposed to be him. The three pig-looking carvings that were trampling the stick figure were likely meant to be boars, a reference to Naruto's meal. While it amused the Uzumaki, he didn't let it show on his features. His focus shifted to Sakura instead, who he watched nodding off as she read one of her million scrolls. Suddenly, Naruto's senses blared a warning a split second before he noticed Kakashi leaning on the tree next to Sakura.</p><p>'That wasn't Shunshin. Fast...' Naruto thought, his body reacting in seconds as he rose to his feet.</p><p>The whisker-faced boy noticed Sakura jump and drop her scroll at Kakashi's appearance. His other teammate, Oda, was spluttering and pointing at Kakashi indignantly.</p><p>"Pf.. tch... wh-what the hell, Kakashi-sensei?!" Oda yelled, "Where have you been?!"</p><p>Sakura stood as well, picking up her scroll as she did, before glaring fiercely at Kakashi, "Yeah, what gives, sensei? You told us to meet here at 6!"</p><p>Naruto did not miss the stress Sakura put in the word sensei, for once agreeing with her tone of frustration. Kakashi had left them waiting out here for a long time. Naruto was interested to see what his potential sensei had to say for himself.</p><p>"Ma, ma, forgive me my would-be students," Kakashi drawled as he waved them off, "I got lost on the road of life, then a black cat crossed my path... turns out, it was a purple snake actually."</p><p>The three genin stared at Kakashi, all of them with varying degrees of disbelief. An awkward silence hung in the air a moment, before being shattered by Oda's ferociously growling stomach. The boy's teammates each shot him a look, Naruto's look somewhat smug, Sakura's look somewhat worried, and Kakashi's look clearly triumphant. The Copy-Ninja clapped his hands together, and eye-smiled at his students when he had regained their attention. Naruto watched on as the man pulled out two silver bells.</p><p>"Okay, so, here is how this is gonna work," Kakashi began, "I have these two bells. To pass the test, you must claim one of them from me. Come at me with everything you've got, and with intent to kill, or you'll never take one of these bells or have what it takes to be a ninja of Konohagakure no Sato."</p><p>'I knew it,' Naruto thought smugly, 'A combat test. As long as he doesn't move the location, this is in the bag. Wait a second, two bells..?'</p><p>The tension in the area seemed to intensify several degrees, and Sakura asked what had just been on Naruto's mind, "But, Kakashi-sensei, there are only two bells... does that mean?"</p><p>Their sensei grinned widely as an ominous aura began to appear around him, "That's right Sakura... only two of you will pass! The one who fails will be sent to Remedial or dropped from the program. So if I were you, I wouldn't hesitate!"</p><p>Naruto's eyes widened slightly, his mind flying into overdrive as he thought back on all the lessons Hiruzen had taught him. A cold sweat erupted across each would-be member of Team 7 as they looked between themselves, Kakashi, and the bells hanging from his hand. The jonin pulled a small timer from a pouch on his leg, set it, and then placed it on a rock near the edge of the training ground alongside three bentos.</p><p>"To make it even more interesting," Kakashi continued, "There will be a two hour time limit. Not only will the one who does not manage to get a bell fail the test, they will be tied to one of those posts over there and denied lunch while the rest of us eat."</p><p>Naruto had to hide a small smirk, not in the least bit put off by the threat. He was glad he had eaten. The silver-haired jonin looked each one of his students in the eyes, observing all the different signs and tells of both their nervousness and determination. The young Uzumaki looked to both of his possible teammates, wondering what was running through their minds. Naruto knew Oda was at a disadvantage since he hadn't eaten, one which would be more or less severe based on when he last had a meal. Sakura and Naruto were in a much better position, and as the stronger, more competent students would likely be the ones to take the bells. The air was heavy with tension.</p><p>'Something isn't sitting right with me here though...' Naruto thought as his muscles tensed.</p><p>Kakashi's hand flicked the switch on his timer, "Begin!"</p><p>Sakura and Oda rushed off as fast as they could. Naruto simply stood in place, staring at Kakashi as the man continued to read his Icha Icha book. The wind whistled across the clearing, rustling the leaves on the trees and causing the grass to ripple to and fro. After a few minutes, Kakashi glanced up from his smut and locked eyes with Naruto, who continued to calmly observe him.</p><p>"Not gonna hide? Not exactly wise to rush things with an opponent whose strengths and weaknesses you don't know." Kakashi remarked as he flipped a page.</p><p>"Who's rushing?" Naruto asked as he slowly withdrew a kunai from one of his pouches and began twirling it around his index finger.</p><p>The two ninja remained standing there, gazes locked, reading one another. Naruto could tell that Kakashi was someone who he couldn't beat. Not yet, anyway. The older man was a legend in his own right, the Copy-Ninja, Copycat Kakashi, Sharingan no Kakashi, one of the pair that made up the Tatsu Sore Wa ("Two Gazes, One Eye"). If Hiruzen was to be believed, and the old man always was in Naruto's opinion, then Kakashi was also once an ANBU Commander as well. The former Hokage had let it slip to Naruto one day when the young Uzumaki had been pestering him for information on Kakashi, Obito, and Rin. Naruto knew in a one on one fight, Kakashi would win. Still, simply getting a bell from the man was another thing entirely.</p><p>"So you made a fire, huh?" Kakashi asked, pointing to the poorly hidden remains of Naruto's fire.</p><p>Naruto stopped twirling the kunai and shrugged, "Yeah, so what?"</p><p>Kakashi gave him a disappointed look, wagging a finger and tutting at him, "You obviously built it to cook something, you wouldn't need it otherwise. I told you not to eat, you'll just throw it up."</p><p>A savage grin came over Naruto's face as his grip tightened on his kunai and he dropped into a crouch, "I think I'll take my chances!"</p><p>The kunai cut through the air, whistling toward Kakashi at a pretty impressive speed for a genin. Kakashi's own kunai was already rising to parry it, however. Just as the two kunai were about to clash, Naruto used the Kawarami no jutsu to appear where his kunai had been. In his right hand was a kunai with which he deflected Kakashi's, and in his left was another kunai which he swung around toward the back of Kakashi's head. The Copy-Ninja twisted out of the way at the last second, using the momentum to launch a spinning back kick toward Naruto's exposed left side. The blonde nearly took the hit clean, but managed to get away with another well placed Kawarami. Kakashi's kick busted through the log Naruto used to escape, and then the silver-haired jonin straightened up and flipped another page in his book. Naruto eyed him from across the clearing as the two stood almost exactly where they had been just seconds before.</p><p>"You've got a good reaction time with the Kawarami." Kakashi complimented as he watched Naruto analyze him.</p><p>"Hiru-jiji has drilled the basics in to me for a long time. He said they are the foundation of a great ninja." Naruto replied as he took a pair of brass knuckles out of one of his pouches.</p><p>"Hmm, sounds like Hiruzen-sama," Kakashi said with some mirth in his voice, "He's not wrong, either. A ninja can go pretty far with just the basics. Are you interested in another lesson?"</p><p>Naruto smirked at the masked man's wryness, "Sure! We've been needing a taijutsu lesson!"</p><p>The Copy-Ninja quirked a brow at Naruto's comment, but soon understood what he meant as a small army of Narutos began rushing toward Kakashi from out of the treeline of the clearing.</p><p>"Bunshin?" Kakashi asked as he watched the original Naruto charge straight at him as well, "No... Kage Bunshin?!"</p><p>As soon as Kakashi realized the difference, the sea of fifty to sixty Naruto clones were on him. The jonin was forced on the defensive as punches, kicks, elbows, and knees rained down on him from all directions. Each of the Naruto clones also had the same pair of brass knuckles on as the original. As Kakashi ducked, dodged, and diverted the blows, he quickly realized that it would not be wise to take a direct hit. Naruto's blows seemed heavy, and they would very likely do some serious damage. The Copy-Ninja deployed a few well timed Kawarimi before taking out over ten of the clones in a burst of speed. The Uzumaki's movements seemed to be rather wild to Kakashi, and the sheer number of clones Naruto threw at the man had put him on the back-foot for a moment, but with ten clones down the pressure began to relieve somewhat. Even with the numbers advantage, Naruto still felt as if Kakashi wasn't taking him seriously.</p><p>Splitting his remaining clones in to three groups, the blonde genin launched a pincer attack on Kakashi with two of the groups to pressure and distract him, and fell back further into the clearing with the third group. As his clones protected him, he began to weave through hand signs. The two groups attacking Kakashi began a coordinated assault, throwing smoke bombs ahead of them to cover their approach. A hail of kunai and shuriken erupted from the smokescreen a second later, causing Kakashi to quickly pull out a second kunai to meet the storm head on. Back behind the smoke, Naruto completed his chain of hand signs.</p><p>" Doton: Renga Danmaku! (Earth Style: Brick Barrage)" he cried out as he slapped both hands to the ground.</p><p>Behind each of the eight clones surrounding him, a square column of earth rose up, nearly seven feet tall by four feet wide. Each clone quickly jumped to the top of each column, attaching themselves to the side with chakra. The Naruto in the center of the formation, who had been holding his final hand sign, switched it to another. From each risen column shot a large brick, with a clone attached to the face of it and now heading through the smoke toward Kakashi. As they rocketed toward the silver-haired jonin, a storm of similarly sized bricks followed through the air behind them. Naruto allowed himself a small smirk as his first trap combination went off without a hitch. As he stood to survey the damage, however, a pair of hands burst from the ground underneath him. Kakashi gripped Naruto by the ankles, and pulled him underground up to his head before he could escape.</p><p>"Gotcha," Kakashi said as he appeared in front of Naruto's exposed head, "That was a nice one, I gotta admit. The use of the smokescreen and clones was inspired. But I took care of your clones easily enough, and you left yourself exposed back here."</p><p>Naruto laughed before giving the Copy-Ninja a challenging look, "Not quite, Kaka-sensei!"</p><p>With a poof of white smoke, the Naruto in the hole vanished and Kakashi was left in the clearing alone. Out in the forested areas of Training Ground 9, the real Naruto gained the last of his clone's memories. He shook his head in disappointment at the outcome of his assault. Kakashi had cut through his clones with ease, and had seen through his attack pattern and simply tunneled underneath everything Naruto had thrown at him. The Uzumaki and his clones hadn't even been able to corral Kakashi into the trap Naruto placed underneath the area where he built the fire. The blonde genin also revealed a couple cards in his hand so to speak, as now Kakashi knew Naruto could perform Doton jutsu as well as the Kage Bunshin. Likewise the silver-haired jonin had witnessed a multi-pronged assault and trap of Naruto's devising, which the Uzumaki was sure would be analyzed and picked a part. A shinobi of Kakashi's caliber would glean a hefty amount of information about Naruto from the attack. Meanwhile, Naruto gained almost nothing of value from the encounter, other than the fact that Kakashi could perform Doton: Shinju Zanshu (Earth Style: Double Suicide Decapitition ). All in all, Naruto would chalk it up as a failure. Failures, however, could be salvaged and learned from.</p><p>The real Naruto flitted through the trees, hopping from branch to branch as quietly as he could. In his mind's eye he pictured Hiruzen, the old man standing in front of the large oak desk at the Sarutobi clan compound, lecturing him on all his mistakes; The strategy was sloppy, you gave too much away. A ninja should strike with stealth and precision, giving little away while learning as much of their target as they can. Naruto could hear his mentor's voice as if the God of Shinobi was rushing through the treetops with him. The slight rasp, the deep baritones which belied an even deeper wisdom, the hardness from years as Hokage which softened at the edges when dealing with Naruto; Failures can be our best lessons. A ninja must take advantage of these lessons in order to truly begin to grow. With those words echoing in his head, the blond-haired genin set off toward his next target determined to do better next time.</p><p>Naruto wasn't a sensor-type ninja, or at least he wasn't much of one yet. Hiruzen had hammered in the basics of several techniques that the last Uzumaki could utilize, such as residual chakra tracing and as well as residual chakra imprinting. Neither of which Naruto was particularly good at yet. Neither were truly needed, in this case, however. Instead Naruto used good old fashioned tracking skills to find his target; one Haruno Sakura. While the young woman was fairly competent at covering signs of her presence, hunting and tracking were some of Naruto's strong suits. According to Hiruzen, the Uzumaki clan were generally born with what most would call "enhanced" senses, though they were truly only better than average. This was a part of the Uzumaki clan's Kekkei Genkai, which included increased vitality as well, or so Naruto was told. Hiruzen was a fountain of knowledge, but he had shared little else about Naruto's clan with the boy. The former Hokage believed Naruto should learn these things as he grew older, wiser, and more powerful. The Uzumaki trusted the old man, and generally left satisfied with his answers.</p><p>It was nearly forty-five minutes into the exam when Naruto finally found Sakura, high in a tree that looked over the main clearing. She was crouched on one of the larger branches toward the top of the tree, with several tripwires and traps set around her. From her viewpoint she was observing the clearing and Kakashi, who was standing not far from where the exam started still reading Icha Icha Paradise. Naruto approached the pink-haired genin with caution, avoiding her traps while silently giving the girl his respect for how well they were set up. He appeared behind her and tapped her shoulder. Sakura twisted around, kunai already in hand and prepared to slice into Naruto's throat. He gripped her wrist and stopped the blade short of its target. He saw Sakura's eyes flash with a handful of emotions before she sucked in a breath to scream at him. Naruto quickly covered her mouth with his other hand and shushed her.</p><p>"Sakura, calm down," He implored, purposefully dropping his usual insults, "I just need to talk, please."</p><p>He waited a moment, then relaxed his grip when it was obvious the pinkette was willing to listen. He let go of her wrist and mouth, backing up slightly on the branch to give her some space.</p><p>"What do you want, baka?!" she hissed in a whisper, sneering at Naruto as she did so, still clearly pissed that he had gotten the jump on her.</p><p>Naruto put his hands up in front of him in a 'hear me out' gesture, "I just want to help. Or, rather, I need help. None of us can beat Kakashi on our own, as much as it pains me to admit it."</p><p>"No duh, Naruto-yaro," Sakura replied, though her tone was less hostile upon hearing Naruto admit to needing help, "But we just need to get a bell! Oda might not be able to do it, but one of us should be able to."</p><p>Naruto shook his head, though he smirked slightly at Sakura's slipped admission of his skill, "Maybe, but I don't think so. We should work together. If not all of us, at least the two of us..."</p><p>The two were silent for a few moments. Sakura looked back and forth between Naruto in front of her, and Kakashi in the clearing. The Uzumaki could tell that his teammate was at least giving his proposition some hefty thought. That was a win at in his book, considering Naruto thought she was more likely to punch him in the head rather than help him get ahead. The blond studied Sakura's face as she chewed her bottom lip in contemplation. Naruto wasn't sure if he was winning her or losing her at this point. Sakura took one last, long look at Kakashi before looking back to Naruto. She seemed to be searching his face for something, but the boy was unsure what it was exactly. He quirked his brow, and the expression on his face seemed to make hers change. Her face set into a look of determination.</p><p>"I can't help you, sorry," Her voice brooked no room for argument, "I have to do this on my own, to prove to myself that I can. To prove I can surpass you, and surpass everyone's expectations."</p><p>Naruto's eyes widened a bit, and he was quiet a moment, before he grinned softly and nodded, "Yeah, okay, fine. I can understand that."</p><p>The blond boy turned on the branch, preparing to leave, before he turned back to look at Sakura again.</p><p>"When he kicks your ass," He started, drawing a glare from the pinkette, "Come find me in the forest. If you still can, that is..."</p><p>With that, Naruto took to the treetops once more, this time heading in the direction where some of his clones had just been dispelled. From the memories he received he knew that one of his elaborate traps had been triggered. Specifically the Red Scroll trap, the more comical of the three big traps Naruto had his clones set up. Within ten or so minutes Naruto approached the area where the trap had been set, on the outskirts of another clearing within Training Ground 9. The clearing was riddled with scuffs and scrapes, kunai and shuriken, as well as clear evidence of exploded paint bombs. Total pandemonium. Naruto kept his guard up as he inched closer and closer, extending his senses out and searching the area for any sign of Kakashi. He tuned out the frustrated grunts and exceedingly loud cries for help from Oda, the one who had triggered his trap, who was currently hanging upside down from a rope attached to a tree. The boy was swinging from side to side, struggling in vain to somehow get his feet untied. His entire body was covered in a sticky black substance of Naruto's design. Stuck on top of the goop were tons of feathers, various shades of oranges, yellows, and reds overlapping to give Oda the appearance of a rooster. Naruto couldn't help but let a few chuckles escape his lips as he finished his approach.</p><p>Oda's gaze snapped to Naruto's form and he abruptly stopped flailing, "Hey! Hey Naruto-teme! Get me down from here! Come on!"</p><p>"Yeah, yeah, hold your horses." Naruto groused as he cleared the area underneath Oda of kunai and shuriken.</p><p>Afterward, with the flick of his wrist, Naruto launched a shuriken and cut the rope holding the Yoshimaru clan heir. The black-haired boy attempted to flip and land on his feet, perhaps in a futile shot at maintaining at least some dignity, but instead he over-corrected and smacked the ground face first. Naruto couldn't help but wince a bit, moving quickly to help his teammate up and beginning to feel bad about the whole situation. The Uzumaki grabbed Oda by his left arm and hauled him to his feet. The Yoshimaru boy was red in the face and refused to meet Naruto's gaze, obviously embarrassed at how he was found.</p><p>"Sorry about that fall, I should have caught you or something," Naruto started, attempting to be serious as his teammate scowled in any direction but his while covered in chicken feathers, "Are you feeling alright? Hurt anywhere?"</p><p>"Che, I'm fine!" Oda exclaimed, crossing his arms, "I didn't need anyone to catch me anyway!"</p><p>The blonde genin just blinked at that, "Err, right..."</p><p>The two shared a moment of awkward silence before Oda finally managed to look Naruto in the face, "Uh, th-thanks for helping me out of that, though."</p><p>Naruto grinned back at him, "Eh, yeah, no problem, don't mention it. I was actually coming to you for help anyway, so you'll be able to return the favor!"</p><p>Oda cocked his head to the side and squinted at Naruto fiercely, "Eehhhhh?! You came for my help Naruto-teme?! Is this an alternate universe?!"</p><p>The Uzumaki's mood soured somewhat at his teammate's tone and facial expressions, but he pressed ahead anyway, "Okay, yeah, big shocker, I get it... This is serious though, we need to pass thi-"</p><p>"No, no, let me savor this moment," Oda interrupted, grinning through the goop and feathers at this turn of events, "Let it really sink in, ya know?"</p><p>Naruto scowled for a moment before beginning to turn around, "Alright, forget it. This was a mistake."</p><p>Oda reached out and grabbed Naruto's arm this time, stopping him, "Wait, wait, I'm sorry! What is it, huh? I'll listen..."</p><p>The blonde sighed before nodding, "Look, I came to ask for your help against Kakashi. I don't think any of us can get a bell on our own. Besides, I'm beginning to think there might be more to this test than snatching a bell."</p><p>"Oh yeah? What's that then?" The Yoshimaru boy asked, eyebrows raised.</p><p>"Teamwork, I think," Naruto replied, though he rubbed the back of his neck nervously, "I'm not sure, really, but I think if two of us, or all three of us, worked together and managed to get even one bell... I think Kakashi may pass us. Just a hunch though."</p><p>The black-haired teen stared at Naruto for a few moments, trying to really get a read on the boy, before finally crossing his arms again and nodding slightly, "Alright, I'll help you. What about Sakura, though? Should we go get her?"</p><p>Naruto broke into a wide grin at Oda's reply, finally feeling a little bit of success at last, before he frowned once more, "Sakura, she's uh, not interested in helping. I already asked her before I came to find you."</p><p>Oda heaved a heavy sigh, beginning to pick off the feathers still covering him from his neck down, "That makes it a bit harder, then. Figures you two couldn't work together for even a second though."</p><p>The Uzumaki chuckled at that, "Yeah, tell me about it. She said she had to prove she could exceed me. Oh, here, let me help with that..."</p><p>Naruto's teammate looked up as the blonde approached while forming a hand sign of his own creation. He then placed his hand, now glowing slightly with barely visible chakra, on Oda's right shoulder. The black goop and feathers began to flow freely and effortlessly down the Yoshimaru clan heir's body, until it all pooled on the ground at his feet and not a speck remained on him. The black-haired teen looked at Naruto in surprise, eyes almost comically wide.</p><p>"W-wha-... How did you do that? That stuff was so sticky!" Oda asked in astonishment, wondering what kind of jutsu Naruto performed.</p><p>The blonde laughed as he rubbed the back of his neck again, "Well, I should know how to get rid of it if I created it, right?"</p><p>Oda laughed for a moment as well, "Ah, right, that makes... wait a second... you created this? As in, this goop? This trap?"</p><p>Naruto backed up a step as he felt the atmosphere begin to change as Oda began glaring at him, "Ha, ah, yeah. I suppose I forgot to mention that part, didn't I?"</p><p>The black-haired teen scowled and shook his fist at Naruto, "Screw you, Naruto-teme! You think I'll help you now?! You helped me out of your own trap you stupid jerk!"</p><p>Naruto could only watch in equal parts amusement and frustration as Oda stomped off, storming out of the clearing in a huff while yelling about dumb teammates. The Uzumaki released an exasperated sigh as he realized he would have to go it alone once more. Both teammates had refused to work with him, and while before that would not normally have bothered Naruto, for some reason it did today. He wasn't sure what that reason was, though, and thus he pushed the feelings aside for later analysis. For now, it was time to focus on his next plan of action. He began to think of several plans to lead Kakashi from the clearing to either his Blue Scroll trap, or his Green Scroll trap. That would be his best chance to grab a bell if he was going it alone. As Naruto concocted these plots, however, several of his clones began dispelling one by one. Naruto relived the memories of both groups of clones surrounding his remaining two traps being dispatched by clones of Kakashi, who likewise made short work of dismantling his traps. Kakashi's use of the Kage Bunshin to take out his traps made Naruto more annoyed than he cared to admit.</p><p>A final sigh escaped Naruto's lips as he looked around the clearing he was in. Most of his supplies had been expended on those three large traps, as well as the small smattering of traps around the main clearing the exam had started in. By Naruto's estimation of the sun's position, there was a little more than thirty minutes left on the timer. Oda and Sakura would be of no help to him, and thus he couldn't rely on passing due to "Teamwork" as he suspected may be the true meaning of the test. Not exactly a good place to be in. Still, Naruto had conviction that he could prevail.</p><p>'I don't have time to concoct some grand scheme. Most of it wouldn't work against Kakashi anyway... Screw it, I'm going back in head first!' Naruto thought with determination.</p><p>Mind now set on his course of action, the young Uzumaki vanished into the trees, headed toward the main clearing of Training Ground 9 and his last shot at becoming a genin. He could not, under any circumstances, fail this exam and let down the people in his life who were important to him; Hiruzen, Konohamaru, Tsunade, Obito, Rin, Asuma, Ayame, Old Man Ichiraku... No, he simply had to pass. He would hold nothing back in this next bout with Kakashi and make sure he secured a bell. Hiruzen's voice rang out in his head once more; For a ninja, strength and power do not always win the day. The Uzumaki knew the old man would be disappointed that he was charging in headfirst without a plan.</p><p>'Sorry, Hiru-jiji, but sometimes the best plans are thought up on the fly!' Naruto thought in a useless attempt to appease the imaginary Hiruzen in his mind's eye.</p><p>Naruto appeared at the edge of the clearing once more, eyes locking on Kakashi's form across the way. On either side of the man, near Kakashi's feet, Naruto saw the heads of his two teammates sticking out of the ground. They too had fallen prey to Kakashi's Double Suicide Decapitation technique it seemed. The Yoshimaru clan heir was twisting his neck this way and that way, yelling obscenities at Kakashi and demanding to be let go. Sakura was on the opposite end of the spectrum, not moving her head at all and making no noise. Her expression was that of someone turning over a failure in their head again and again as she stared forward silently. Meanwhile the silver-haired jonin was once more reading his novel, flipping from page to page lazily with no sign that he was paying any mind to his surroundings. Naruto knew better than that, however. The young Uzumaki heir surveyed the clearing one more time. Some kunai and shuriken lay discarded on the ground, a few mounds of earth were scattered about from Naruto's last attack, and the remains of the fire pit sat untouched. The blonde fished into his pouches and took stock of his remaining supplies. A single paint bomb, two smoke bombs, some ninja wire, what remained of his kunai and shuriken, a scroll with some food and water sealed inside, and a handful of explosive tags. Oh, and the gift Hiruzen had given him that he had yet to utilize.</p><p>'I can make something work with this...' Naruto thought as he prepared for his final assault.</p><p>A few minutes later, Kakashi glanced up from his current page as he heard the whistling of dozens of kunai and shuriken heading in his direction. He hastily pulled out two of his own kunai once more and began to deflect any weapon which came near him. Naruto was not going to let him off that easy, however. Many of the blocked and discarded weapons began transforming into the Uzumaki's clones, who then engaged Kakashi in a vicious taijutsu brawl. The clones pushed themselves to the limits, and the jonin began to feel a little hard pressed. Their speed and power seemed to increase as Naruto truly began to give it his all. Still, it didn't seem to be enough against the formidable man known as Copycat Kakashi. One by one his clones were once again destroyed. As the last one fell, a single kunai rocketed toward the Hatake from the direction of the treeline. Kakashi flipped the kunai he held in his left hand around and smacked the incoming projectile out of the air. Hidden in the shadow of the first kunai was a second kunai, catching Kakashi by surprise. The jonin still managed to bring his other kunai up in time to block it, however the second kunai was soon replaced with Naruto.</p><p>"Not this tactic again," Kakashi said with a smirk as he blocked the blonde's kunai and grabbed his wrist, "I won't fall for the same trick twice!"</p><p>Naruto grinned as his last paint bomb slid from his sleeve and into his open hand. With a flick of his wrist the paint bomb hit Kakashi's vest, exploding in an array of colors. The jonin pushed the blonde genin away and jumped backward to put some distance between himself and the boy, but the damage was done. From the chest down Kakashi was covered in paint, dripping down his vest and pants and beginning to pool on the ground. Before the silver-haired man could reason out Naruto's tactic, he was being hard pressed by three more clones who burst from the treeline behind him. Each one of them held a long, intricate looking staff. The staff was a deep black color save for the two tips, which were capped with golden monkey heads. Running along the staff from top to bottom were various seals placed in white ink, and the custom made hand-grip in the center of the staff was white as well.</p><p>"Taste the great gift given to me by Hiru-jiji!" One of the clones yelled out as the three began waging an assault on the paint-clad shinobi.</p><p>Kakashi had already thought the blonde boy's fighting style was monkey-like and unpredictable, but with the addition of the staff Naruto took it to another level. The silver-haired jonin bobbed and weaved through the frenzy of staff strikes and feints, using his remaining kunai to block or divert strikes when and where he could. After a third attack landed, striking his thigh and nearly grazing the bells, Kakashi was tempted to lift up his headband. He refrained, however, and instead launched himself into the air, back-flipping out of the range of Naruto's clones. As he landed, however, two more Naruto clones burst from the ground underneath him. He managed to strike both of them down, but not before one was able to open a scroll and unseal it's contents onto Kakashi. What appeared to be a meal of two bowls of miso ramen, as well as several cups of water, spilled out onto the jonin. The man simply deadpanned as he looked down at himself, now dripping paint, water, and soup onto the ground.</p><p>"What... what is this even for?" Kakashi asked, for once genuinely confused by Naruto's attacks. It wasn't everyday an opponent covered you in his lunch, after all.</p><p>Naruto and his clones provided no answers. Instead, two walls of Earth raced toward Kakashi from his left and right, just as the three clones he had been fending off rushed him from the front. The Copy-Ninja jumped backward once more, pushing to give himself some distance. As he landed and prepared to jump again, he felt his foot sink into the ground just a bit. The jonin glanced down to see his left foot within the remains of Naruto's fire pit. Hidden somewhere near the treeline, the real Naruto smirked in perceived triumph. A huge explosion ripped through the clearing as Naruto's long hidden trap went off, multiple explosive tags and smoke bombs stacked on top of each other making for a very large blast. Black smoke billowed out across the clearing, and soon there was enough to nearly cover the entire area. Once the smoke reached where he was in the treeline, the real Naruto moved once more, rushing forward to finish the fight. He stopped short of where he suspected Kakashi was due to the smell of miso ramen, and slowed his breathing. He focused his senses as best he could, straining his ears for a specific sound.</p><p>Drip... Drip... Drip...</p><p>There! The paint, water, and food dripping off Kakashi gave his position away. With a quick pivot, Naruto turned and brought his staff down in an overhead swing. As he did so, he remembered the pointers Asuma had given him on the nature of Futon jutsu. He channeled his wind nature into the attack, and as the staff hit the ground in front of him a small blade of wind rocketed toward his target. The wind cut through the smoke, and for a split second Kakashi's form was revealed. His eyes were wide as he barely dodged the wind blade, but they grew even wider when he noticed Naruto's true target; the bells. The blade of wind had cut one of the bells from his belt loop where he had tied them, and now the bell seemed to hang in the air in front of Kakashi. He made to grab it, but Naruto's form burst from the smoke and his hand wrapped tightly around the bell before Kakashi could snatch it back. Everything seemed to slow to a crawl, then stop. A strong gust of wind blew through the clearing, taking most of the lingering smoke with it. Sakura and Oda, watching the display as best they could from their spots stuck in the ground, could only gape at Naruto's results.</p><p>"Yatta!" Naruto exclaimed as he did a little jig, "I did it! I passed!"</p><p>Kakashi looked at the blonde genin with an eye-smile, "Not quite, Naruto."</p><p>Before the blonde could question his sensei, the bell in his hand transformed into a clone of Kakashi with a puff of white smoke. The silver-haired jonin couldn't help but chuckle at the sight of Naruto holding one of his clones bridal style, gawking and gaping like a fish out of water at being fooled by his own trick. Then, the timer went off, signifying the end of the test, and his clone dispersed in Naruto's hands. The Uzumaki boy seemed to be in a state of shock at the brutal turn of events, so Kakashi focused on freeing his other two students. Still feeling a bit numb, Naruto slowly followed the man as everyone headed toward the wooden posts Kakashi had pointed out at the beginning of the test.</p><p>"So," He started as they settled near the posts, "You all failed! Congratulations!"</p><p>None of the genin spoke, or moved much for that matter.</p><p>"Sorry, Oda, but I am a man of my word," The silver-haired man quipped as he prepared some ropes, "As the worst performer in the exam, you will be tied to this post and denied lunch."</p><p>Naruto watched, still stuck in his head going over his loss, as Kakashi tied Oda to the post despite the boy's many protests. Sakura too did nothing but follow Kakashi's movements with a dejected stare. After a few moments, Kakashi returned to the rock with the timer on it, as well as three bentos he had prepared. He handed a bento to Sakura, then to Naruto.</p><p>"I brought these for your lunch. After lunch, I will be giving you three one final chance," Kakashi explained, his voice like steel, "We will try the bell test again in an hour. My only stipulation... Do not feed Oda! Under any circumstances. Doing so will be an automatic failure!"</p><p>All three genin looked at Kakashi, surprise evident on their faces. Each thought privately that the jonin was being a bit on the harsh side. Without another word, the silver-haired man vanished, presumably to eat his own lunch in peace. The potential members of Team 7 sat for a moment in shared silence.</p><p>"This is bullshit! What kind of a test is this?!" Oda bellowed as his stomach gave a loud roar of hunger, "I'm gonna starve! I'm gonna take this straight to the Hokage! Kakashi can't get away with this!"</p><p>Naruto picked at his bento absentmindedly, still playing over the turn of events that just transpired, "Actually, he can. Jonin are allowed to administer whatever test they deem fit, per the Hokage."</p><p>That seemed to shut Oda up, and the boy began sulking quietly to himself. Naruto became lost in thought, pondering over Konoha's ninja system and everything he had learned from Hiruzen about being a shinobi. This test, how it was set up, how it was administered, none of it really made sense to him. Hiruzen preached the value of comrades and teamwork, and Konoha was known as the village which cared for its ninja and allies above all others. Why, then, would the test to become genin require one to throw their teammates away in order to acquire success? The true test must be about teamwork, as he had originally thought... He was so caught up in his musings Naruto almost did not notice Sakura pushing her bento to Oda.</p><p>"What are you doing? You'll be failed!" The Yoshimaru heir yelled, even as he looked at the bento in front of his face with stars in his eyes.</p><p>"I already ate recently, baka," Sakura explained, "We will need to work together to get the bells from Kakashi, like Naruto-yaro was trying to tell me. Eat so you're not holding us back more than usual."</p><p>Naruto nodded as well, holding out his own bento too, "Sakura-chuko over here is right. Kakashi has seen us in action, now. It will be even more difficult to get a bell from him."</p><p>Oda looked back and forth between the two genin, both glaring at the other slightly for their insults, but both still holding out their bentos for him to eat. He sniffled, then started crying a bit. Both Naruto and Sakura looked away a bit awkwardly.</p><p>"Don't cry, baka!" The pinkette yelled, "Just eat!"</p><p>"That's why I'm crying!" Oda exclaimed as he squirmed in his bindings, "I can't reach them cause I can't use my hands!"</p><p>Naruto laughed, and soon Sakura joined him, both enjoying the predicament their teammate was in a little too much. Finally, Naruto broke his chopsticks apart and crouched down to feed Oda. Just as the first bit of fish was nearing the boy's open mouth, Kakashi appeared behind them in a flash. Somehow a dark atmosphere and miniature storm clouds appeared behind him, with rain and lightning and the whole nine yards. Fury seemed to radiate from his pores at discovering his team had disobeyed him. The three genin watched on with wide eyes and held breath, waiting for their sensei to say something, anything.</p><p>"You dare to disobey me?!" The Copy-Ninja bellowed at the top of his lungs, "You... pass!"</p><p>The atmosphere and weather disappeared in an instant, clearly a simple genjutsu the man had cast for added effect. His body posture changed to that of a relaxed and carefree sensei once more, and he eye-smiled at his new students. Sakura and Naruto face-vaulted, dropping their bentos in sheer surprise at the quick turn around of events. Oda looked as if he was going to wet himself, before hollering in joy. All three of them shared a look, still confused but happy with the results nonetheless.</p><p>"Uh, Kakashi-sensei... why? We disobeyed your orders..." Sakura asked, scared she may somehow cause the jonin to reverse his decision, but wanting to know his thought process.</p><p>"Indeed you did," Kakashi replied jovially, "And normally that would be unacceptable. However, there's something important I want you all to remember, something that was drilled in to me by one of my best friends... Those who abandon the rules are trash, but those who abandon their teammates are worse than trash."</p><p>The now official genin all stared at Kakashi in wonder, etching the phrase into their minds.</p><p>"You may have disobeyed me," Kakashi continued, "But in doing so, you helped your teammate, who otherwise would be in a very bad position..."</p><p>"Ha! I knew it," Naruto claimed, seeming to finally snap out of the funk of his loss, "The exam was about teamwork!"</p><p>Kakashi raised a brow at that, "Oh? You knew? Then why did you attack me alone both times?"</p><p>"Why don't you ask those two?" Naruto replied smoothly, pointing at Oda and Sakura.</p><p>The Copy-Ninja's gaze turned toward his other two students, both of whom were looking off to the side with somewhat embarrassed looks. Neither of them spoke for a moment.</p><p>"Well?" Kakashi asked, "Did Naruto try to work with you guys in the beginning?"</p><p>Sakura was the first to fess up, scratching her left cheek with an index finger, "Ah, er... yeah, he did, actually. I was a little too stubborn to listen though."</p><p>"And what happened as a result?" Kakashi asked.</p><p>The pink-haired genin looked down and to the side again, cheeks flushing, "I went in alone and lost. Badly."</p><p>Kakashi nodded, "Exactly. Let this be a lesson to you, hopefully one that you remember well. And you, Oda?"</p><p>The black-haired boy, still tied to the post, scowled a bit, "Hey! In my defense he caught me in a damn chicken trap before he asked for my help!"</p><p>The jonin blinked, looked over at a grinning Naruto, then sighed heavily, "O- kay, whatever that means... My point still stands, you should have cooperated with your teammates. You would have had a better chance of getting a bell that way."</p><p>The Yoshimaru heir started crying softly, and Kakashi felt a bit bad for the boy, "Hey, now, no need to fret. You all passed and we can work through these mistakes to grow from them."</p><p>The boy shook his head in the negative, eyes still downcast.</p><p>"No," he sniffled, "Not that... I just noticed... the bentos are ruined!"</p><p>Oda let out a wail as his stomach growled once more, and the rest of his team looked to the ground to see he was correct; the bentos had been overturned and their contents spilled out on the dirt of Training Ground 9. Kakashi sweat-dropped, Sakura laughed, and Naruto scratched the back of his head sheepishly.</p><p>"Yeah, sorry about that Oda..." the blonde genin remarked.</p><p>Kakashi waved away the boy's apology, "Ma, ma, it was an accident."</p><p>The silver-haired jonin cut the ropes binding Oda, then pulled his own untouched bento out of seemingly thin air, "Here, you can eat mine."</p><p>The boy's face lit up as he quickly grabbed the bento out of Kakashi's hands, tearing in to it with a gusto and absolutely no manners whatsoever. The rest of Team 7 watched him for a moment, equal parts impressed and disturbed. Naruto thought the Yoshimaru heir could likely give him a run for his money in an eating contest.</p><p>"So," The Copy-Ninja began, "Here's the plan. I have to go meet Tsunade-sama soon, but I'd like to take you all to dinner tonight, my treat. Meet me at Yakiniku BBQ at seven!"</p><p>With that, the jonin disappeared in a swirl of wind and leaves, leaving his new genin behind. The three teenagers eyed each other before breaking out into big grins. Sakura smacked her fist into her open hand, determination and triumph burning in her eyes. Oda went back to stuffing his face, and Naruto simply basked in the moment, smiling widely. Finally, after years of training and waiting, after all the blood, sweat and tears he had shed, he was officially a genin of Konohagakure no Sato. Pride swelled in his heart, and excitement bubbled up at the thought of rushing home and telling Hiruzen.</p><p>Naruto waved at both his teammates, "I'm off! I've got some people to go tell the good news to!"</p><p>"Me too," Sakura replied, "I'll see you guys at Yakiniku's at seven then?"</p><p>Naruto nodded in affirmation as he began to walk away, and he vaguely heard Oda mumble an affirmative to Sakura around his bento. The blonde shinobi then took to the trees once more, heading home to the Sarutobi clan compound with some pep in his step and a grin on his face. From treetops to rooftops, Naruto made his way from Training Ground 9 through the outskirts of Konoha all the way to his destination. The Sarutobi clan compound gates stretched up in front of him as he approached. The two ninja standing guard gave quick nods of acknowledgment to Naruto as he entered, which he returned in kind. He passed by several clan members who waved or smiled at him. The young Uzumaki briefly wondered why he couldn't see or hear Konohamaru running around wildly, before remembering that the boy had recently began studying to enter one of the Academy Precincts.</p><p>Naruto arrived at last to his intended destination, pausing for a moment at the door to Hiruzen's study. His hand hovered just above the oak finish, but he hesitated to knock for some reason. Suddenly nerves cluttered his stomach and he felt like he was blowing everything out of proportion. After all, he had simply become a genin, the first step in being a real ninja. Just as Naruto dropped his hand to his side, the door opened to reveal his oldest friend and first mentor, the former Sandaime Hokage himself, Sarutobi Hiruzen. There was a proud smile on his wrinkled face as he looked down at the young Uzumaki heir.</p><p>"Naruto-kun," Hiruzen's gravely voice, always so deep with wisdom and intelligence, rang out in the hallway, "It seems we have much to discuss..."</p><p>/-/</p><p>A/N: And there you have it.</p><p>Chapter 2, just breaking the 10,000 word barrier without including this Author's Note. I hope, dear readers, that you have enjoyed it. I enjoyed writing it.</p><p>Thank you to all the readers, and especially those who left a review. Thank you to the readers who added the story to their alert or favorite list. I truly do appreciate it. I didn't expect much, to be honest, but I was blown away by the response. So, again, thank you. As usual I ask that you like, subscribe, follow, review, share, do all the things. Please. And thank you!</p><p>Until next time,</p><p>KnS</p>
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<a name="section0003"><h2>3. Gentle into that Good Night</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>/-Sarutobi Clan Compound, Konohagakure no Sato-/</p><p>Sarutobi Hiruzen awoke at four-thirty in the morning, as he had like clockwork on nearly every morning since his father had begun training him at the age of four. At a respectable seventy years old, that was quite a few mornings. The Sarutobi clan head, a man many in the ninja world would consider ancient, began each day as he had for over six decades... breakfast, then training. Today, on this particular morning, however, it was not just any old training. Today was young Naruto-kun's genin exam, and as such it would be a rather light session to save the boy's energy. Hiruzen performed his usual morning routines in brisk succession; preparing breakfast, brushing his teeth, and taking a shower finished within fifteen minutes. He donned his black shinobi pants and sandals, his mesh armor shirt, and a black training gi with the Sarutobi clan symbol embroidered on the back.</p><p>The former Hokage made his way to the private training ground tucked inside their compound. Waiting for him there in the early rays of the rising sun was one Uzumaki Naruto. The boy was already in the middle of stretching, an unusually serious look on his face as he did so. The look morphed into a large grin when he noticed Hiruzen approaching.</p><p>The old man smiled kindly at the boy and waved, "Good morning, Naruto-kun. I trust you slept well?"</p><p>The blonde youth nodded as he finished his stretches, "Morning jiji! Sure did, like a baby ya know!"</p><p>Hiruzen chuckled, "Good, a growing ninja needs their rest. Now, are you prepared for your exam?"</p><p>"You know I am, Hiru-jiji," Naruto responded, looking confident, "I can handle whatever Kakashi throws at me!"</p><p>The old man ruffled Naruto's hair affectionately, "I'm sure you could... in a year or two, after training hard. You know, a ninja must alwa-"</p><p>"Ne, ne, Hiru-jiji, I don't have the time for a lecture today unfortunately," Naruto interrupted, "I have to be at Training Ground 9 in about an hour."</p><p>Hiruzen looked abashed for a moment, sighed, then smiled, "Ah, of course, of course. Let's get to it, shall we?"</p><p>The young Uzumaki nodded in agreement before rushing at Hiruzen in a burst of speed. The Sarutobi elder easily blocked a barrage of incoming attacks, not losing an inch of ground as Naruto's assault was effortlessly dismantled. The old monkey gave the boy some credit, as his patterns were rather wild and unpredictable. The average opponent a genin would come across, the likes of bandits and very low ranked missing-ninja, would likely be overwhelmed by such a combination of high, mid, and low range taijutsu strikes. Hiruzen, however, could block them all with his eyes closed. Naruto disengaged suddenly and launched a stream of wind-enhanced shuriken, but the former Sandaime simply crouched down and slammed a fist on the ground. A wall of solid earth erected in front of him, blocking all of Naruto's shuriken. Hiruzen struck the wall with his palm and it shot forward toward the blonde teen's position.</p><p>When the boy vaulted over the wall to escape it, Hiruzen was there to meet him. They engaged in another flurry of taijutsu blows, but it was obvious Naruto was outmatched. The old man connected with a vicious right hook that dispelled the clone in a puff of white smoke. Hiruzen shook his head and laughed, already regretting teaching that jutsu to the young Uzumaki. The elder Sarutobi threw the regret on the vast mountain he had accumulated over the years, a tiny new addition to a history of questionable decisions. Hiruzen extended his senses in search of his sparring partner, and with a smirk he shoved his fist deep into the ground below him. His hand wrapped around the neck of the last Uzumaki's shirt and the former Hokage yanked him up into the air. The boy just hung there, limp and seemingly defeated.</p><p>"I give up." He intoned, unmoving.</p><p>The Sarutobi clan head looked at the boy in surprise as he put him down, "Really? That's not like you, Naruto-kun..."</p><p>"You can always find me with your sensory skills, it's no fun ya know?" Naruto replied, dejected.</p><p>"Is the upcoming test getting to you?" Hiruzen asked, "You're not one to sulk about such thi-"</p><p>The blonde attempted to land a broadside on Hiruzen, expecting to catch the old man by surprise. But the boy was decades too early for this type of tactic to allow him to get through Sarutobi's guard. The former Hokage grabbed Naruto's incoming fist, pivoted, and had the boy pinned before he could blink.</p><p>"Nice try," The elder man's gravely voice rang out across the training ground, "But you're simply not fast enough for that to work."</p><p>"Yeah, yeah," Naruto grumbled, "Can you let me up now, jiji?"</p><p>Hiruzen laughed as he complied, helping Naruto to his feet, "Okay, that's enough sparring. How are you progressing with the Kage Bunshin?"</p><p>The young Uzumaki dusted himself off before looking at the former Sandaime, "Well, I can create about two hundred or so at once now. But really, I can only do about sixty-five, seventy tops before the memories make me black out. It's also more of a drain on my chakra pool than I would like."</p><p>The old man rubbed his chin in thought as Naruto explained his current limits, "Hmm, I see. That is still rather impressive, considering you've only learned the technique two weeks ago. Many ninja simply do not have the chakra capacity for such a technique. Even some jonin would struggle to produce the numbers you are producing. That being said, you should take it slow with the clones as you work those numbers up."</p><p>The blonde shinobi nodded in understanding, and Hiruzen continued, "How about the Bunshin?"</p><p>Naruto looked off to the side as he scratched the back of his neck nervously, "Uh, yeah... I can still only do two before they look... well, you know..."</p><p>Hiruzen did know. For the longest time the young Uzumaki could not perform the Bunshin jutsu at all. The boy's chakra pool and coils were much larger than average, and thus the fine amount of control to perform such a technique was nearly impossible for the boy. In the beginning, his clones would appear warped and deformed, unable to fool anyone. However, after several years of training under Hiruzen, the young Uzumaki had managed to produce a viable Bunshin. Just one, however, at the time. Apparently the boy had finally managed two.</p><p>"Show me." The elder Sarutobi commanded his young pupil.</p><p>Naruto nodded and made a seal. On either side of him materialized two clones, though one looked a little pale and more transparent than the other. While the clones would be of little use to the boy, the fact that he had come this far was a testament to his improved chakra control. He would soon be ready for the water walking exercises, though Hiruzen would likely leave that to Kakashi. The old man had all the faith in the world that Naruto and the rest of Team 7 would pass. He saw it as more of an inevitability. He trusted in Naruto's ability to see that teamwork was the answer, and lead his team to victory.</p><p>"They are... passable." Hiruzen said with mirth filling his voice.</p><p>The young blonde laughed as he dispelled them, "That bad, huh?"</p><p>Instead of responding to his remark, the Sarutobi clan head simply moved on, "And your elemental training? How has that been coming since we covered those theory scrolls last month?"</p><p>"I need to go over them again, probably," Naruto admitted, "Asuma helped me with some of the wind stuff, I get that the most. You had plenty of pointers for both earth and fire but those are harder to come by. I already learned a couple jutsu of each nature type, but most of what you left me in that scroll I haven't gotten to yet."</p><p>Hiruzen nodded, smiling down at the boy and placing a hand on his shoulder, "It will come with time, Naruto-kun. You still have much to learn, and far to progress. Now, it's about time you get ready for your exam, correct?"</p><p>The blonde boy looked to the position of the sun, cursed, then began sprinting off into the compound while yelling his good-byes. Hiruzen simply watched him leave in slight amusement, his fondness for the young Uzumaki evident on his face. The old monkey's thoughts drifted to the boy's genin exam, and he briefly wondered if he should watch on his crystal ball. Kakashi was notorious for failing all his would-be students, but Hiruzen knew Team 7 would find a way to prevail. Naruto would not let him down, not after the last three years of training, not after the blood, sweat, and tears the boy had wrenched from within himself.</p><p>The elder Sarutobi had given the last Uzumaki ample time to simply grow up and have a normal childhood, especially after the incident on the boy's sixth birthday. As such, Hiruzen hadn't involved himself much in Naruto's ninja training until the boy was already ten years old and in the Academy. The blonde-haired child had been given the freedom to choose how seriously to pursue his ninja career and how seriously to take his ninja training. Over the last three years, however, that changed. Naruto had finally asked the old monkey to train him seriously not long after his tenth birthday, and that had been the end of his precious freedom. Hiruzen made sure that Naruto knew what true commitment was, and since those early days the young boy had blossomed into quite the capable shinobi.</p><p>Pulling himself from his thoughts once more, the former Hokage took note of the sun's position and reasoned that he had nearly 3 hours or so before he needed to worry about watching Naruto's exam. He had no doubt that Kakashi would be his usual tardy self. How the silver-haired jonin and his friend Uchiha Obito ever achieved anything while always being so late was one of the only things beyond the understanding of the God of Shinobi. Hiruzen was about to begin the walk to his office when he sensed a rather surprising arrival.</p><p>"Long time no see, sensei," The towering form of Jiraiya of the Sannin appeared next to Hiruzen, "How's life been treatin' you, old man?"</p><p>The old man in question simply smiled up at his longtime student and friend, happy to see him after nearly two years, "Ah, Jiraiya-kun, it's good to see you. What brings you to this humble old man, eh?"</p><p>"What, a student can't come see his sensei every once in a while? Is it a crime now?" Jiraiya asked in feigned indignation.</p><p>Hiruzen chuckled and shook his head, "Don't think I'll be fooled. It's always something with you. Need a place to hide out after being caught peeping?"</p><p>The white-haired sage laughed nervously and waved his hands back and forth, "O-of course not! Don't be ridiculous. Let's just catch up over some tea or something, ya? You still love that stuff, right?"</p><p>The elder Sarutobi simply shook his head in bemusement, before sighing and motioning Jiraiya to follow him. The two men walked to Hiruzen's office in a comfortable silence, neither wanting to speak freely in front of other members of the clan who began to mill about the Sarutobi Compound performing their morning routines. Within minutes the two were behind the solid oak walls of his office, any discussions or secrets divulged being safe behind the confines of some of the best privacy seals on the planet. The sensei poured his student a glass of sake, as well as one for himself, which he pulled from the bottom drawer of his desk.</p><p>As Jiraiya took the offered drink, he couldn't help but give a perplexed look to his teacher, "Sarutobi-sensei, it's barely after six in the morning. Even for me, this is..."</p><p>Hiruzen gave the man a hearty laugh before responding, "Come now, Jiraiya-kun! Such is the life of a shinobi. You and I may both be struck down before we can finish this conversation. Let us stand on tradition and drink sake as we catch up and commiserate, regardless of the hour."</p><p>The Toad Sannin shrugged his shoulders and clinked his sake cup against Hiruzen's, both of them saying a quick "Kanpai!" before draining their cups. The old monkey grabbed his bottle and replenished their supply. Jiraiya took a seat in one of the chairs facing the old man's desk, draping his long white mane over the back as he leaned against it. The elder Sarutobi took the seat at his desk, beginning to sip from his second cup.</p><p>"So, to business, then. I trust you've spoken to Hokage-sama?" Hiruzen asked as the two settled in.</p><p>"Of course," Jiraiya replied, crossing his right leg over his left knee, "She's been updated on the important matters, has the reports. Wanted me to come 'fill in the old monkey' so everyone is on the same page."</p><p>The Sarutobi clan head smirked at his student, "Sounds like Tsunade-chan. Please, enlighten this old man."</p><p>"Well, to start, she wants you to help coordinate the upcoming Chuunin Exams that we are hosting in roughly six months." Jiraiya revealed, sipping on his second cup of sake a bit slower as to savor the sweet flavor.</p><p>Hiruzen leaned back in his chair and crossed his arms, silent for a moment before nodding, "Of course, that shouldn't be a problem. I've hosted my fair share of Exams over the years."</p><p>The spymaster sitting across from the old man grinned, "That was Tsunade's thought as well. 'Let a pro handle it' she said. Anyway, she also wants you in on the upcoming meeting with the delegates from Amegakure no Sato. They've submitted to have teams participate in the Exams and have expressed interest in seeking a closer relationship with the village."</p><p>The elder Sarutobi raised an eyebrow at that, having been out of the loop long enough to not quite have a grasp of current politics, "I thought that Ame's leader was some mysterious prophet? The supposed 'Kami no Ame' who rid the village of Hanzo and his ilk?"</p><p>"That's about the long and short of it. At least as far as the world knows." Jiraiya replied.</p><p>The old man locked eyes with his student, "Is there any truth to these rumors, Jiraiya-kun?"</p><p>The Toad Sannin tossed his hands up and shrugged his shoulders, "Beats me. Even my network hasn't turned up anything credible. Everyone within the village is so tight-lipped. The representative Ame sent to us claims to answer to 'God's Angel', whoever that is, so Tsunade has kind of taken this whole thing with a grain of salt. Apparently she is meeting with some higher ups in a couple weeks and needs you there for it."</p><p>Hiruzen nodded once again, "Anything else?"</p><p>"The issue we discussed in my last letter," The white-haired man began, finishing his cup of sake before continuing, "The scales have been tipped."</p><p>The former Hokage froze a moment, his cup halfway to his lips, his gaze locked with Jiraiya's once more, "You're sure? Absolutely?"</p><p>The sage leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees, "Tsunade and I are still looking into it, but, yeah, I'm pretty sure."</p><p>Hiruzen began stroking his goatee absentmindedly, his eyes now distant and glossy, "Then we have much to prepare for..."</p><p>Jiraiya sighed heavily, "Indeed we do. Now, one last thing..."</p><p>The old man was drawn from his reverie at the sentence left hanging in the air. Jiraiya's voice had the tinge of shame underlying each word, and Hiruzen knew what Jiraiya would ask even before he asked it.</p><p>"Naruto-kun is doing fine," The elder Sarutobi said, "He's taking his Genin Exam right now and I suspect he will pass. You should stick around, catch up with him. He hasn't seen you in nearly two years."</p><p>The Toad Sannin let out another heavy sigh, his good mood dampening somewhat, "I can't, not this time... I still have a contact I need to meet about the Akatsuki and their movements, and Tsunade needs me to pick up certain supplies from Taki and Kusa."</p><p>"Tsunade-chan is keeping you busy, I see." Hiruzen replied, beginning to put away the sake supplies as the two had finished their drinks.</p><p>"You know it," Jiraiya responded with a lecherous grin, "Though not in the ways I would truly like!"</p><p>The old monkey simply shook his head in exasperation, "Come now, Jiraiya-kun, it is unbecoming to make such innuendos about your teammate. Is there anything else you or Tsunade-chan needed to convey?"</p><p>The white-haired man shook his head as he stood to leave, "Nope, that's it. Before I go, though, give this to Naruto for me when he passes his exam."</p><p>The Toad Sannin placed a small scroll on Hiruzen's desk, plain white colored with a red band around it. On the band, in black kanji, was the message 'To: Naruto, From: Jiraiya' and 'Congrats!'. The elder Sarutobi looked down at the scroll in curiosity, before he too stood and began to follow Jiraiya out of his office.</p><p>"Let me walk you out, Jiraiya-kun." Hiruzen said in his usual gravely tenor.</p><p>His student made no protest, and the two once again walked in a comfortable silence. It was only a couple minutes until they were at the main entrance to the Sarutobi Clan Compound. The toad sage paused at the gates, looking down at the ground for a moment and seeming to be lost in thought. The old monkey gazed at his student a moment, trying to read what was going on inside his mind. He appeared to be gathering his thoughts, so the old man gave him time. After a moment, the white maned shinobi shifted his gaze up to lock eyes with Hiruzen once more.</p><p>"Ya know, sensei," Jiraiya started, his voice low and somber, "I keep having this dream lately. A vicious storm comes to Konoha, laying waste to the village and killing many. I'm somehow powerless to stop it or rescue anyone. The moon appears bright in the sky, blood red, then suddenly the dead rise to haunt me. I see you there... you're missing your right shoulder and arm, shambling at me with your rib cage exposed and this vacant look in your eyes... I see Tsunade... headless, yet somehow able to crawl at my feet... I awaken as I'm overwhelmed by the village's dead. Do you think... could it mean anything?"</p><p>Hiruzen stared off into the village just outside the compound gates for a moment, rubbing one of his hands through his goatee as he pondered his student's words. The chaotic din of the village proper just outside the Sarutobi Clan Compound was completely muffled by seals along the outer edges of the compound. The only sound for a moment was the quiet, steady breathing of the two shinobi and the running water of a nearby fountain.</p><p>"Have you been spending time with Gamamaru-dono again, Jiraiya-kun?" The elder Sarutobi asked with a chuckle, hoping to inject a little levity back into the situation.</p><p>The Toad Sannin chuckled as well, though it was a bit forced, "Heh, yeah, I suppose so. He's always going on and on about his prophecies. Must have rubbed off on me or something..."</p><p>Hiruzen placed his hand on one of Jiraiya's shoulders, fondly recalling a time where he did not have to reach up to do so, "Jiraiya-kun, your dreams are simply that, dreams. And even if they should come to pass, just know Konoha can weather any storm as long as our ninja have the Will of Fire burning within them. We shall persevere."</p><p>The sage smiled after hearing his sensei's words, seemingly a bit relieved of his worry, "There you go again with that Will of Fire nonsense. I get your point though, and I guess you might be right old man... Anyway, good luck with Naruto later. And don't forget about the scroll!"</p><p>"Yes, yes," Hiruzen replied, waving his student off, "Naruto-kun and I will be fine. Just don't forget about us on your next visit."</p><p>"Can do, sensei!" Jiraiya said with a smirk, before he disappeared in a swirl of wind and leaves.</p><p>The old man shook his head as he began a leisurely walk back to his office. Ever since he had convinced Tsunade to take the mantle of Hokage from him nearly eleven years ago, Hiruzen had made it a habit to take life just a bit slower. Once he made it to his office, he began some of the daily business of being the head of the Sarutobi clan; looking over the clan's finances, managing intra-clan requests and conflicts, responding to messages from other clans within Konoha, organizing training and advancement opportunities for his clansmen, as well as several other clerical and largely traditional duties.</p><p>The Sarutobi clan had been a part of Konoha since nearly the very beginning. In fact, they were the third clan to join the settlement, only months after the Senju and Uchiha clans had squashed their disagreements and begun building the village. The monkey-attuned clan was instrumental in bringing in the Nara, Akimichi, and Yamanaka clans as well. Such a powerful alliance of clans quickly attracted the attention and allegiance of the Hyuuga, Aburame, Yoshimaru, Inuzuka, Shimura, and Haruno. Many other, smaller clans followed. Thus was the base of power formed that would make Konoha one of the most fearsome villages on the face of the planet.</p><p>Sarutobi still vaguely remembered some of those first important meetings between his grandfather, Sarutobi Koga, and the founders of Konohagakure no Sato, Senju Hashirama and Uchiha Madara. His grandfather had insisted on bringing both his son, Sasuke, and his grandson, Hiruzen, to all the meetings, and the others had not objected. At the time Hiruzen had only been around five or six years old, but he learned much about ninja, negotiations, and diplomacy in those early days. It was during those meetings that Hashirama, and then Tobirama, came to take an interest in Hiruzen and his growing talent. Once the Sarutobi clan had officially joined the village, the Senju brothers requested to train Hiruzen and the rest, as they say, was history. Practically ancient history at this point. The old monkey remained lost in thought for hours as he used muscle memory to methodically fill out clan paperwork.</p><p>Before long it was nearing eleven o'clock, and the elder Sarutobi began to feel himself grow hungry. He paused his reminiscing and paperwork in order to make some lunch, a quick meal of diced up fruits, yogurt, and granola. He returned to his desk to finish his meal, as well as watch what remained of Naruto's exam. The old man reached into his desk and withdrew his crystal ball. A couple quick hand signs later and the ball filled with the image of Naruto. It appeared the boy was in the middle of helping Yoshimaru Oda out of a trap, and if the black goop on the Yoshimaru heir was any indication, the trap was one of Naruto's design. Hiruzen recognized the mystery goop the young blonde had created. To this day the boy hadn't shared the recipe with anyone, even Hiruzen himself.</p><p>The elder Sarutobi watched over the next hour as Naruto attempted to get a bell from Kakashi. Hiruzen was a bit disappointed that the blond-haired youth did not seem to have a plan at first, and was apparently not working with his teammates. The old man gave Naruto the benefit of the doubt, however, believing it likely that he had missed something earlier that would absolve the boy of Hiruzen's disappointment. Finally the old man watched as Sakura and Naruto both offered food to Oda, who he had watched be tied up with more amusement than he cared to admit. Shortly thereafter the clan head watched as Naruto left Training Ground 9, no doubt heading straight for the compound. Hiruzen canceled his jutsu, stashed his crystal ball, and cleared his desk of paperwork. After a handful of minutes, a loud knock echoed throughout his office. He was at the door in a second, slowly pulling it open. Standing in front of him was a very nervous looking Uzumaki Naruto.</p><p>"Naruto-kun," Hiruzen's gravely voice, always so deep with wisdom and intelligence, rang out in the hallway, "It seems we have much to discuss..."</p><p>Hearing the old man's welcoming tone seemed to sooth Naruto's nerves slightly, as the boy smiled up at Hiruzen and nodded before he entered the office. The elder Sarutobi led the way to his desk, once more reaching into his bottom drawer to withdraw his sake supplies.</p><p>"Would you like a cup, Naruto-kun?" The old monkey asked, grinning at the boy.</p><p>The blonde youth seemed confused for a moment, "I'm not of age yet, Hiru-jiji, I can't."</p><p>Hiruzen waved his hand at the boy, dismissing the notion, "You're a ninja of Konoha now, that doesn't matter anymore. Remember, that headband marks you as an adult in the village's eyes. You can buy alcohol if you so choose."</p><p>Naruto's eyes widened comically, "Y-you know I passed already?! That's what I came all the way back here to tell you old man! How did you know?"</p><p>The Sarutobi clan head gave the boy a cryptic look, steepling his hands in front of his face, "Let's just say I have my ways…"</p><p>The old monkey poured a cup and handed it to Naruto, "Now drink up. You'll likely need it for this conversation…"</p><p>Naruto raised a brow at that, but took the offered cup nonetheless. He sipped it slowly, making a face as he did so.</p><p>"It's too sweet… and bitter too somehow? This is gross jiji." The blonde genin responded dispassionately.</p><p>Hiruzen poured his own drink before replying, "You'll get used to it, Naruto-kun. Also, traditionally we are supposed to clink our glasses together and say 'Kanpai' before we drink."</p><p>Naruto looked up from his cup of sake at that, looking a bit sheepish, "So it's like 'Itadakimasu', right? Sorry for being rude then."</p><p>The old man waved away the blonde youth's concerns, "Don't fret, you've only just learned about this particular social etiquette. Now, onto more pressing matters… how was your Genin Exam?"</p><p>"It could have gone better," Naruto started, mood dampening a bit as he recalled the events he had just gone through, "I made some bad calls early on, and never really recovered. I almost snatched a bell, but Kakashi was one step ahead of me."</p><p>Hiruzem stroked his goatee, observing Naruto's body language closely, "Don't beat yourself up too badly, Naruto-kun. As I've said in the past, failures are often the greatest lessons for a ninja."</p><p>Naruto chuckled, "Yeah, that rang out in my head a couple times."</p><p>The old man smiled, "Good. Now, how did you pass? Did you discover the true meaning of the test and get your teammates to work with you?"</p><p>The blonde teen sipped some more of his sake before responding, "Ehh, not quite. I tried, but they rebuffed me. I had Oda convinced after freeing him from a trap he was caught in, but he was pretty pissed off after finding out that I had been the one to set it up."</p><p>"Understandable," Hiruzen remarked, grinning as he recalled the scene he had witnessed in his crystal ball, "At the very least, though, you tried to engage your teammates to work together. I saw that you and Sakura gave your food to Oda in the end. I'm guessing that's how you passed?"</p><p>"Yeah, it was Sakura's idea," Naruto said with a small smile, "Once we gave Oda food, Kakashi-sensei came out of nowhere acting all mad, the whole fire and fury bit. Then he pas- wait, you saw? You saw us?"</p><p>The elder Sarutobi gave Naruto the same cryptic look as before, "I told you, Naruto-kun, I have my ways."</p><p>The boy crossed his arms and glared at the old man, clearly annoyed at the stonewalling that was nearly inevitable during a conversation with Hiruzen. For his part, the old monkey simply smirked and poured them both another glass of sake. He raised it up and waited a moment for Naruto to follow his lead, the two of them saying a quick 'Kanpai' before sipping from their cups. A comfortable silence hung in the air for a few moments, both of the shinobi simply enjoying their time spent with the other. Before long, however, Hiruzen's face fell a bit and he sighed heavily.</p><p>The weight of the conversation that was about to take place was already heavy on his shoulders.</p><p>The old man gripped his sake cup tightly, "Naruto-kun… there is an... important matter, that we must discuss now that you are officially a genin."</p><p>Hiruzen's not quite subtle change in demeanor had the boy's full attention. He sat up a bit straighter and uncrossed his arms.</p><p>"What is it?" Naruto asked, equal parts curious and apprehensive.</p><p>"I'm not sure where to start," The old monkey responded, heart growing heavier and heavier by the second, "I suppose I should first apologize for keeping this from you. I hope by the end of it all, you will understand why I did so. I also ask that you please listen patiently until I am done with my questions and answers…"</p><p>The blonde boy nodded, unsure of where this was heading, "Okay, of course Hiru-jiji. Now, what is it?"</p><p>Another sigh escape Hiruzen's lips, and he turned away from Naruto for a moment. The events of that fateful day began playing in his mind's eye, and the pain of losing his wife and eldest son, not to mention two of his closest friends, came rushing back. Naruto could only watch his friend and mentor, worry beginning to grow in his heart.</p><p>"Do you remember the event that occurred on the night of your birth?" Hiruzen finally asked.</p><p>"Well, no, not really," Naruto said with a nervous chuckle, "But I remember what my teachers taught me in the Academy. It was the night that the Kyuubi attacked the village. The Yondaime sacrificed his life to kill the fox and save Konoha."</p><p>After the blonde's brief oration there was silence. Hiruzen once again began stroking his goatee, a nervous trait he had picked up in his youth. Naruto gazed at the elder Sarutobi, his face clearly set in a questioning look. The old man poured them both a third cup of sake before continuing.</p><p>"That's the story we tell everyone," Hiruzen began, leaning back in his chair, "But it's just that, a story. It's not the full truth of the matter."</p><p>Here the elder Sarutobi paused to sip his sake, and Naruto leaned forward in anticipation. The boy had no idea what Sarutobi was talking about, but any hidden knowledge about that time was something Naruto would gladly hear out and file away for later.</p><p>"The truth…" Hiruzen remarked, pausing again as he grappled with his word choice, "The truth is, biju cannot be killed. At least, not in the normal sense. If they are defeated or destroyed, they simply reform elsewhere after a while…"</p><p>Both of Naruto's eyebrows rose upward in shock, his eyes going wide and his mouth dropping open, "They can't be killed..? Then, how did the Yondaime Hokage manage to get rid of the Kyuubi?"</p><p>The former Hokage stared directly into Naruto's eyes, "How would you stop an opponent who could not be killed?"</p><p>The blonde boy sat silent for a few moments, ideas running through his head. Hiruzen could see him slowly connecting the dots, piecing together the puzzle bit by bit.</p><p>"If I knew enough about seals to perform one of that magnitude, I would seal it… and the Yondaime was one of the greatest sealmasters in Konoha's history… so he sealed the beast," Naruto said slowly, beginning to come to a horrible realization, "And you're telling me this, on the day that I graduated, because... Because, he sealed it in me, didn't he?"</p><p>"Yes, Naruto-kun," Hiruzen replied solemnly, "He did. He had no other choice. Many things are unknown about that night, shrouded in the mysterious ether of the past. Just know, however, that you had a hand in saving Konoha even as a newborn."</p><p>Naruto was silent once more, his head down and his gaze cast to the floor. Hiruzen could see the boy clenching and unclenching his fists. The old man didn't speak, opting instead to let the last Uzumaki work through his feelings for a moment.</p><p>"Why?" The blonde's voice was barely a whisper.</p><p>"Why did he choose you?" Hiruzen asked, and after seeing a slight nod from Naruto he continued, "Of that I do not know. I wasn't with him that night, not when he took you from the hospital and not when he sealed the beast inside you. By the time I arrived on the scene, the Yondaime was already dead."</p><p>The young boy was clearly not happy with that answer, so Hiruzen continued on, "Perhaps it was your orphan status? Perhaps you were simply the first baby he came across? Perhaps it was your blonde hair that caught his eye? I don't know that it truly matters Naruto-kun. We can only deal with what is, not what once was."</p><p>"Of course it matters!" Naruto roared, before taking a deep breath and attempting to calm down, "I'm sorry, jiji, but I just wish I knew more. This is all so crazy and new and I wish I could talk to the Yondaime, even for just a second…"</p><p>Hiruzen frowned and shook his head, "I'm sorry, Naruto-kun. Truly I am. It was thought best to keep this from you and from most of the village, and Tsunade and I decided to tell you once you started your ninja career."</p><p>"Is that why some villagers glare at me?" Naruto asked incredulously, his voice beginning to rise once more with each passing word, "Is that why they sneer and talk behind my back? Is that why some people refuse to even look me in the eye?! Or spit on the ground after I've passed by?! They think I'm the fox?! Am I the fox?!"</p><p>By the end of his questions Naruto was red in the face, small streams of tears running down from his eyes. Hiruzen was out of his chair and around his desk in an instant, taking the young boy into his arms and hugging him tightly.</p><p>"Shh, shh, no Naruto-kun, of course you're not the fox," The former Sandaime tried to comfort the Uzumaki heir, patting his back gently as Naruto cried softly into his shoulder, "Does a scroll become the kunai sealed within it? Did the scroll you sealed your lunch in today become miso ramen? Of course not…"</p><p>The young boy's mind seemed to ease a bit at the analogy, his tears slowly drying up to a small trickle. He sniffed a bit and pulled himself back from Hiruzen's embrace, looking the old man in the eyes. Naruto seemed to be searching for something, something deep within the mentor he knew and loved.</p><p>"Please don't hide things like this from me again, Hiru-jiji…" The blonde pleaded softly.</p><p>"I'm sorry, Naruto-kun, and I will try in the future," Hiruzen replied, keeping his voice level and kind, "Such is the life of a ninja, though, that it may happen again…"</p><p>The freshly minted genin looked taken aback for a moment by the response, before his face settled into a look of grudging acceptance. Buried underneath it, however, Hiruzen could clearly tell that the boy was hurting and his trust was damaged. Not so badly as to be irreparable, but damaged nonetheless. The former Sandaime would have to strive hard to begin gaining some of that trust back.</p><p>'Only to lose it all again when he becomes a jonin and I tell him the truth about his parents…' The old man thought to himself sadly.</p><p>The former Hokage was used to lying, knew the ins and outs of it, understood its necessity in the life of a shinobi, and yet he still felt a terrible pang in his heart at the mountain of lies he had told Naruto throughout his life. Truly Hiruzen wished for nothing more than to tell Naruto everything; the whole truth, every person, place, and event down to the last detail. But alas, he could not. The upper echelon of Konoha's ninja ranks thought it best to keep certain secrets from the boy until the appropriate time, and the elder Sarutobi agreed. Naruto simply wasn't ready to defend himself against the kind of enemies he would be facing if his Jinchuriki status and especially his heritage became common knowledge. Perhaps, in the end, Hiruzen had sheltered the boy a tad too much…</p><p>Naruto pulled away from the old man, looking rather glum as he stood up from his chair, "If that's all you wanted to tell me, I should get going Hiru-jiji. I have to meet my team later, and this has been… this is, just, uh, a lot to process…"</p><p>Hiruzen stood as well, clasping the last Uzumaki on the shoulder, "I understand. Take all the time you need, Naruto-kun. If you need me for anything, you know where to find me."</p><p>The young boy nodded solemnly and headed for the door, his mood considerably darkened from earlier. The elder Sarutobi imagined a tiny storm cloud over the boy's head, such was his demeanor.</p><p>As Naruto opened the office door, Hiruzen called out to him, "Oh! Congratulations again on becoming a full fledged shinobi, Naruto-kun!"</p><p>The blonde gave the old monkey a small smile, nodded, and shut the door behind him. To Hiruzen the loud thud that echoed through his office sounded damming somehow, and he briefly wondered whether Naruto would even bother seeking his advice any time soon. As he began to sink in to his whirling thoughts and gnawing doubts, the elder Sarutobi glanced upon the gift Jiraiya had left on his desk for Naruto.</p><p>'I forgot about the scroll… damn it.' Hiruzen thought, vowing not to let Jiraya find out.</p><p>He walked back around his desk and sat down in his chair, his shoulders hunched and his mind heavy. He contemplated his next set of actions, two sides of himself at war. Hiruzen reached down to the bottom drawer once more, pressing a hidden button to open a secret compartment tucked in the back. Inside the small cubby was a sleek silken bag, which the Sarutobi clan head grasped with one of his large calloused hands. He began to methodically pull out the contents of the bag; a thick syringe, a vial of clear liquid marked with the kanji for Izen, three pellets which resembled ninja ration pills, a tiny piece of wood, and some smelling salts.</p><p>Hiruzen calmly popped one of the pills into his mouth and began chewing, while simultaneously building his chakra and focusing on the memories of that fateful night. Then, his hands found their way to the vial and syringe, effortlessly and efficiently drawing the liquid into the chamber. He placed the vial back in the silk bag and grabbed the piece of wood. He placed the tiny block in his mouth, then began channeling chakra into the syringe. The old man rubbed his left hand across his right arm at the elbow, found a vein, and jabbed the syringe right in in one fluid motion. With an almost relieved sigh Hiruzen pushed the plunger of the syringe down and welcomed the white hot flow of Izen in his veins.</p><p>Within seconds, distant voices and the sounds of battle began creeping in his ears, sweat broke out across his brow, and he bit down on the wood piece harshly as pain passed through him like a wave of white hot magma. Then, almost as quickly, it was gone, replaced instead by rising euphoria and a sense of profound clarity. He leaned back in his chair, let his entire body relax, and drifted away into the complete chaos of that night…</p><p>Everything had started out fine.</p><p>The plan of action devised by both the Sandaime and Yondaime on this day had gone off nearly without a hitch. Sarutobi had taken over Minato's duties as Hokage so that the man could be with Kushina as she gave birth. The two of them had sequestered themselves away from the village in case anything were to happen to Kushina's seal. They were also being guarded by an ANBU squad with the likes of Hatake Kakashi, Nohara Rin, and Hiruzen's eldest son, Sarutobi Setsuma among them. Kushina's caretaker was none other than Hiruzen's own wife, Biwako. All in all, the old man had believed everything would go off without a hitch.</p><p>And then the Kyuubi no Kitsune appeared on the outskirts of the village, releasing a roar that shattered windows and peeled the shingles off of nearby rooftops. The atmosphere instantly became heavy and thick with a miasma of negative emotions as the Kyuubi's chakra leeched out into the environment. Panic gripped Hiruzen's heart as his mind began racing over the possibilities, though he brushed it all aside as he charged into the chaos unfolding before his eyes.</p><p>Despite his speed, by the time Hiruzen and his team of ANBU arrived to face the titanic threat, the Kyuubi had laid waste to a large portion of Konoha's southern districts. A deep sadness and rage blossomed within the Sandaime's heart as he witnessed the death and destruction. Cries of agony and screams of sorrow rang in his ears just as loudly as the pleas for help. As the giant fox turned to face him, Hiruzen summoned Emma, who transformed into his Adamantine Staff form. In one fluid motion the former Hokage grabbed the staff, spun around, and used Enma's extending abilities to push the Kyuubi out of the village, sending the beast tumbling into the forest beyond Konoha's walls.</p><p>Just as Hiruzen and his ANBU unit prepared to rush ahead to continue the fight, Namikaze Minato appeared next to them in a yellow flash. His trademark white cloak was gone, as was his jonin vest. His forehead was caked with blood, sweat, and dirt, and his eyes were wide with the closest thing to panic Hiruzen had ever seen in his face before. His right hand clutched his left side, where a serious wound was bleeding profusely. The elder Sarutobi wondered how this night could get any worse, then immediately regretted that thought.</p><p>"Minato! What's happening?!" Hiruzen yelled as the gathered ninja surrounded the Yondaime.</p><p>One of the ANBU came forward and began healing the blonde-haired man, but he slapped the hands away from his wound.</p><p>"Save your chakra," Minato intoned, both pain and determination evident in his voice, "Someone else is gonna need it more. Sarutobi-dono, I need to speak to you alone. ANBU, engage the Kyuubi and distract it for as long as you can."</p><p>A chorus of "Hai, Hokage-sama" rang out before the gathered ANBU disappeared into the forest.</p><p>"Minato-kun, please, you need help with that wound," the elder Sarutobi began, "We will deal with the Kyuubi!"</p><p>Minato shook his head before drawing closer to Hiruzen, "There's no time. No point. Listen…"</p><p>At the moment Minato was wracked with pain, but he clutched his side again, took a deep breath, and pressed on, "Listen, a masked man claiming to be Uchiha Madara attacked us just after Kushina gave birth to Naruto. He interfered with my reinforcement of Kushina's seal and freed the Kyuubi. Even now I believe this person is controlling the fox…"</p><p>Here the Yondaime trailed off for a moment, clearly in immense pain, and the elder Sarutobi took the moment to speak, "Uchiha Madara? Did he do this to you? None of this makes any sense Minato-kun! Where's Kushina? Where's Biwako?"</p><p>The blonde man clenched his eyes shut, and tears started to slowly trickle down his face, "I'm sorry, Hiruzen… he killed Biwako. He killed Setsuma and most of the ANBU unit. I sent Kakashi, Rin, and the remaining ANBU to track him down once he fled the scene."</p><p>The world seemed to fall out from under Hiruzen at the news, his stomach twisting in knots as his heart threatened to burst from his chest. In a split second the news was compartmentalized and the grief stowed away to be processed another time.</p><p>"W-what are you planning," The Sandaime asked, "What are we going to do?"</p><p>"I have a set of seals," Minato replied, his face paling as he considered what he would have to do, "I'm going to use the Shiki Fuin to seal the beast inside Naruto."</p><p>"No!" Hiruzen yelled, clasping Minato's shoulder, "The village needs you! I'll perform the seal!"</p><p>The Yondaime brushed Hiruzen's hand aside, shaking his head, "You don't know the Shiki Fuin and it's not something you can just perform in a day. Besides, I don't know what that Madara impersonator hit me with, some kind of poison or something, but I can tell it's killing me…"</p><p>"We can get Tsunade, she can heal you and Kushina!" The old man reasoned.</p><p>"She's out of the village, had to help Jiraiya…" Minato groaned out, before leaning over and coughing up blood, "No, it has to be me. There's no one else. I couldn't ask that of anyone…"</p><p>Hiruzen could only stare at his longtime friend, a weighty numbness settling over him, "What do you need me to do?"</p><p>Minato pushed a crumpled piece of paper into the Sandaime's hand, "These are coordinates. I need you to help hold the Kyuubi at bay, and then draw it out to where I will be when I give the signal. Kushina is helping prepare the area for the sealing right now. I need to go back and help her finish."</p><p>Hiruzen looked down at the note in his hand sadly, silent for a moment before nodding in agreement, "It will be done, Hokage-sama."</p><p>Minato smiled at Hiruzen, his eyes filled with respect and adoration, "Thank you, old friend. One last request… please take care of Naruto and Kushina."</p><p>The elder Sarutobi nodded again, "Of course."</p><p>The two men looked one another in the eye, shook hands one last time, and then vanished to perform their respective duties. It would be the last time that Hiruzen saw Minato alive. For the next twenty minutes, the former Hokage, multiple units of ANBU, and an assortment of other nearby shinobi attempted to hold the gigantic demon fox at bay. Hiruzen and Enma were largely responsible for this, with the Monkey King's abilities being crucial in the process. As the elder Sarutobi was fighting tooth and nail against the Kyuubi, he witnessed the Sharingan eyes which signified it was being controlled by an Uchiha. Minato's words echoed in his mind and Hiruzen began to wonder about this mysterious Madara impersonator.</p><p>Many of the ninja fighting the Kyuubi gave their lives, throwing themselves in front of what amounted to a natural disaster in order to buy their village and their Hokage more time. As Hiruzen lost more and more of his support, however, boxing in and controlling the Kyuubi's movements became more and more difficult. Suddenly the fox reared its head back and roared, knocking over trees and throwing ninja and animals alike to and fro. The elder Sarutobi weathered the storm, but most of his allies did not. As the old man began to recover, he noticed the Kyuubi gaze out into the forest as if looking for something. Panic set itself in Hiruzen's heart as the fox turned toward Minato's location and began running.</p><p>"No! We have to stop it! The signal hasn't been sent yet!" The old monkey screamed at the top of his lungs, hoping that there were ninja left alive to hear him.</p><p>There weren't. He was alone, in a decimated forest surrounded by the bodies of his fellow shinobi and kunoichi. Despite the exhaustion, the pain, and the despair that clung to him like a winter cloak, Hiruzen pressed forward to the last breath. He charged toward the demon fox, only to not react in time as one of its nine tails smashed into him. The old man was sent flying, landing somewhere far off in the forest and surviving only due to Enma shielding his fall. Even as he lay on the ground, covered in bruises and cuts and likely with several broken bones, Hiruzen still summoned the Will to stand and get back in the fight. Enma stood by his side, helping his friend stand and take another step forward.</p><p>Off in the distance the two watched as the Kyuubi stopped its charge. It seemed to have one leg extended in a striking position. Then, a bright light engulfed the area, so bright Hiruzen and Enma were forced to shield their eyes and turn away. When they turned back, the Kyuubi was gone. The oppressive atmosphere immediately began to lift as the residual chakra of the demon fox started to dissipate. The elder Sarutobi fought to stay conscious, and asked his old friend to help him get to the coordinates Minato had left him.</p><p>After a long trek through the forest, the two arrived in a clearing which once had a shrine located within it. The shrine now lay in ruins, the area around it clearly damaged by jutsu of various types. In the center of the clearing, on a makeshift pedestal and crying loudly into the cold night air, was a tiny blonde baby. Next to the pedestal were the bodies of two of Hiruzen's dearest friends; Namikaze Minato and Uzumaki Kushina. The two lovers were in an embrace, eyes shut and faces looking surprisingly peaceful. Blood still dripped slowly from the large gashes running from their upper chest to their lower abdomen. Hiruzen didn't move for a moment, simply staring at the scene.</p><p>"Hiruzen, we need to get the baby to safety." Enma said, trying to snap the elder Sarutobi into awareness once more.</p><p>The old man nodded slowly, almost mechanically, his mind still elsewhere, "Of course… of course…"</p><p>Tears pooled at the edges of his eyes…</p><p>And he awoke once more in the chair of his office, with the images of Biwako, Setsuma, Minato, and Kushina flashing in his mind, their voices in his ears as if they were still speaking to him. His body felt as if it was floating, his emotions a mix of mild euphoria and soul-crushing sadness. The needle sat discarded on his desk and tears spilled down his face. Hiruzen made no attempt to move, content instead to wallow in his misery and regret alone.</p><p>/-/</p><p>A/N: And there you have it.</p><p>Chapter 3 of A Single Ripple.</p><p>I hope you enjoyed it dear readers. I enjoyed writing it.</p><p>I apologize for the graphic depiction of drug use. I hope I didn't trigger anyone or turn anyone off. Please let me know if it was too much, I could likely avoid it in the future or put a disclaimer at the beginning of the chapter.</p><p>This chapter is a bit shorter at 8500 words, but it felt right to end it where I did.</p><p>I also had trouble uploading it, so if you spot any mistakes with formatting and spacing I apologize. Please point them out and I will fix them.</p><p>Anyway, let me know what you all think! As usual, please like, subscribe, follow, review, share, all the things! And once again thanks for reading!</p><p>Until next time,<br/>KnS</p>
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<a name="section0004"><h2>4. Brick by Brick, We Grow</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>/-Haruno Residence, Konohagakure no Sato-/</p><p>Sweat began to bead on the forehead of one Haruno Sakura as she neared the house she shared with her mother. The weather in Konoha today was trending toward the 'stifling hot' side. The various sounds of a busy village echoed all around her, though she was very much used to the cacophony after nearly seven years. Sakura and her mother Mebuki had lived in their current home since Sakura's father, Kizashi, had been killed on a mission when Sakura was six. Since then, the two Haruno women had propped one another up through the tragedy and managed to build another home for themselves. Both of them enjoyed the move from the outskirts of the village toward the center, using the hustle and bustle of activity outside their house as a kind of distraction from their grief.</p><p>Today, however, that sadness and melancholy which always threatened Sakura's inner peace was easily brushed aside. Today she had passed her Genin Exam, and in just a few hours she would be celebrating with her team and sensei! How amazing was that? A certain type of giddiness and accomplishment permeated Sakura's being as she ascended the steps to her front door. She could not wait to inform her mother! She gripped the door knob and turned, entering the small and cozy home that had been Sakura's refuge for over half her life. She left her shoes at the doorway and walked down the entry hallway toward the kitchen. She could smell her mother's cooking wafting through the air, and figured it was a safe bet that the woman would be slaving away over their stove.</p><p>" Ojama shimasu, Kaa-san!" Sakura called out in greeting as she entered the kitchen, "I come bearing good news!"</p><p>Haruno Mebuki turned from the stove where she was preparing ramen as she heard her daughter's voice. A large smile spread across her face as she saw that Sakura still had her headband tied around her right bicep, and she quickly gathered Sakura up in a bone-crushing hug.</p><p>"Congratulations, Sakura-chan!" Mebuki squealed in delight, "I knew you would pass! I just knew it! You've worked so hard, and you are just so smart! I didn't have a single doubt, I always knew you would become a kunoichi! Your father would be so proud! I'm so proud! Soon, you'll be ab-"</p><p>"Kaa-san! Take a breath!" Sakura said as she pulled away from her mother.</p><p>Mebuki could only laugh, "Ah, I'm sorry Sakura-chan! I'm just so excited! And proud! Did I say proud? Cause I am!"</p><p>Sakura chuckled and reengaged the hug with Mebuki, "I know, I know. Thank you. It feels pretty good..."</p><p>The two continued to hug, sharing a moment of comfortable silence as well. Until, that is, they both heard the distinct sound of water boiling over a pot. The mother-daughter pair untangled in an instant, with Mebuki rushing to the stove to salvage what she could of her lunch. Sakura moved to grab a towel or two from one of the drawers. In seconds the duo had the ramen salvaged and the mess cleaned. The pink-haired genin couldn't help but laugh at her mother's dilemma.</p><p>"Hey now, keep laughing and you'll have absolutely none of your mother's famous tonkotsu ramen!" The dirty blonde-haired woman threatened as she began pulling out bowls and utensils.</p><p>Sakura pulled her eyelid down and blew a raspberry at her mother, "Ha! I don't want to eat anyway! I had a delicious steak not too long ago!"</p><p>Mebuki gave her daughter the stink eye, "A steak? From where? How could you afford a steak?"</p><p>"Nope, not telling," Sakura replied as she turned to leave the kitchen, "Anyway, my sensei Kakashi invited us out to eat dinner. I'm going to shower and relax in my room until then, okay? Yell if you need me!"</p><p>Her mother fumbled slightly as she was pouring the ramen into her bowl, nearly spilling it everywhere, "Sakura-chan, wait a moment please!"</p><p>The pinkette paused in the doorway, "What is it, Kaa-san?"</p><p>Mebuki finished washing her hands, then dried them on her apron. She quickly placed her bowl of ramen on the table before hurrying off toward their living room. Seconds later she returned clutching a scroll, which she handed over to Sakura. The freshly minted genin looked down at the plain white scroll in her hands, which had a black band with white kanji spelling out the message 'For my little blossom, from Tou-chan'.</p><p>"He told me if he wasn't alive when you became a genin, to give you this..." Sakura's mother said, her voice now low and somber.</p><p>The pink-haired girl was silent, still looking upon the scroll in surprise and slight trepidation.</p><p>Mebuki grinned widely at her daughter even as a few tears started to pool at the corner of her eyes, "He really would be so proud of you, Sakura-chan. I'm so proud of you."</p><p>Sakura's fingers traced the kanji on the scroll gingerly, "Thank you, Kaa-san. This means the world to me."</p><p>The two hugged once more, and then Sakura ventured to the stairway to the second floor of their home. The second floor contained her mother's room, Sakura's room, a guest room/work space, and a second bathroom. The pinkette entered her room with her mind racing, curious as to what her father had left her. She sat down on the end of her bed and opened the scroll. Inside were three intricate looking seals, each with a sentence scrawled above them. Above the first seal it read 'The Remains of the Haruno Clan Library'. Above the second seal it read 'The Haruno Doku Hashi Daisho'. Above the third and final seal it read 'My last words to you'. Sakura's grip on the scroll tightened upon reading the sentence above the last seal. The weight of the moment hit her, and without thinking she tossed the scroll onto her bed and rushed into the bathroom.</p><p>Over an hour later she returned to her room, steam pouring out of the bathroom behind her. She was clad in a pair of her pink pajama shorts and yellow tank top, with her damp hair already pulled back into a tiny ponytail. Feeling refreshed after what was essentially a sauna instead of a shower, the pinkette sat back down on her bed and grabbed her father's scroll once more. Her hands ran over each seal, one by one, followed by each sentence. She tried valiantly to etch the look of her father's handwriting into her brain, to forever remember the feel of the parchment, to forever admire the complexity and beauty of the seals. Finally, after what felt like hours but was only minutes, Sakura sat the scroll in the middle of her bed, bit her thumb to draw some blood, and swiped it across the first seal.</p><p>In a small burst of smoke, a stack of books as well as several scrolls appeared on her bed. The young Haruno heir immediately began shifting through the stack, eyeing the titles as she attempted to organize the pile somewhat. She counted twelve hardcover books, five softcover books, and seven scrolls. A few of them appeared to be very old and weathered, with two of the softcover books even being slightly burned on the edges in a few spots. A couple of the scrolls likewise seemed to have smoke damage on the outside of them. Sakura's heart swelled as she realized these were not books or scrolls that could be found in any old library. These were likely the only copies of these particular books in all of Konoha, if not the world. Nearly all of them were in relation to the Haruno clan.</p><p>'More knowledge about my clan then I've ever had, in fact...' Sakura thought as she gazed at what she considered a treasure trove.</p><p>Her hands caressed the covers as she observed some of the titles; The Haruno Clan: Through the Ages, The Legends of the Fukai, How to Wield the Deep Self, Haruno Ninja Revelations, and Haruno Kenjutsu Theory. There was even a book titled Pink Hair Don't Care, which she was somehow not surprised was written by her father, Kizashi. Briefly flipping through the pages, Sakura determined the book was about the Haruno clan facing discrimination due to their dwindling numbers and their uncommon pink hair trait. The pinkette replaced the book in the pile but promised herself and her father that she would read it eventually. Instead, however, she began the process of placing the books and scrolls on several shelves that she had around her room. Once that was finished, Sakura returned to the scroll to unseal the second seal.</p><p>In another burst of smoke, an ornate weapon rack appeared on her bed. The weapon rack was made of exquisite white ivory, which had cherry blossoms carved upon it and painted pink. The rack had three slots, though only two were filled with a weapon. The top slot was empty, and if Sakura recognized what she was looking at correctly, it was where a katana would normally sit. The weapon rack was a 'daisho', or triple set of blades customarily used by samurai. In the middle slot of the rack was a well crafted wakizashi, with a sheath and hilt that matched the weapon rack exactly; white ivory and pink cherry blossoms. Below the wakizashi, in the third and bottom slot, was a tanto. It too bore the white ivory and pink cherry blossoms of the matching set. Sakura took a moment to marvel at the two blades, pulling each out of its sheath to inspect it thoroughly. Somehow each felt right at home in the pink-haired teen's hands, despite the fact that she was not very well-versed or practiced in kenjutsu. Carved near the bottom of the rack, in the center, was the kanji for Doku Hashi no Haruno, or "Haruno's Poison Edge".</p><p>'I wonder if Kakashi-sensei knows how to use either of these? And what happened to the katana?' Sakura thought idly as she replaced each blade and stood back to admire the incomplete daisho set.</p><p>Looking around her room, her eyes caught the perfect place for her new weapons. She cleared some clothes, various ninja supplies, and a jewelry holder off the top of one of her dressers, opening up enough area to comfortably sit the weapon rack. After arranging the blades the way she thought looked best, she returned to her bed and the scroll. The final, and likely hardest, seal. Her father's last words to her. They wouldn't be spoken words, but they still had so much weight to them that Sakura's hand shook a bit as she neared the seal, and she sucked in a deep breath. Finally, at long last she swiped her thumb across the third seal. In a much smaller puff of white smoke, a single envelope with her name on it appeared on the bed in front of her.</p><p>With hands still shaky, Sakura slowly and carefully opened the envelope, tipping it over and letting the contents spill into her hand; a necklace and pendant, five 1000-ryo bills, a picture, and a few sheets of folded up parchment paper. The pinkette blinked slowly, looking at the money that had fallen out of the envelope. While not an enormous sum, it was more than Sakura was generally used to having all to herself. Five thousand ryo was more than she got in allowance in an entire month generally, and was the equivalent of a couple weeks of D-Rank missions. She quickly pocketed the money and then moved on to examining the necklace and pendant. The necklace were made of some type of thread similar to the ones used in ninja attire, but it was also weaved with bits of gold as well to give it a glimmer and shine. The pendant was mostly composed of a material unknown to Sakura. It was a deep, pitch black, faceted on both sides to resemble a gem. On the front of the pendant, plated in gold, was the scene of waves lapping upon a shore with a sparrow flying overhead. Pink gold cherry blossoms were peppered across the surface of the pendant as well. All in all it was one of the most beautiful pieces of jewelry Sakura had ever seen, and she immediately put it on.</p><p>Finally she came to the picture and the pages of the letter. She gently picked up the picture first, studying it in great detail with a trembling smile upon her face. There, a moment captured in perpetuity, of a happy family celebrating at a festival. Her father, Kizashi, stood toward the back, dressed in a rather dashing kimono of reds and blacks. His right arm was thrown around Mebuki's shoulders, pulling her close to his side. Mebuki was wearing a beautiful yukata, which was a mix of shades of pink and blue.</p><p>Both of her parents had large smiles on their faces, and while Kizashi's eyes were closed, Sakura could see the happiness shining in her mother's eyes. Sakura, only four or five in the photo, sat on Kizashi's left shoulder. His left arm helped hold her in place, and the little girl had a look of total bliss upon her face. She was dressed in a tiny yukata similar to her mother's, but with more reds than blues. She also had a red bow in her hair. To make the picture even more perfect, there were cherry blossom petals blowing in the wind around them when the picture was taken. Tears began to slowly stream down Sakura's face as she burned the picture into her brain.</p><p>'What I wouldn't give to have one more day like this...' The pinkette thought forlornly.</p><p>After a long pause, Sakura finally worked up the courage to read her father's letter.</p><p>Dear Sakura-chan,</p><p>Hey there, little blossom... I don't want to write this, really. I almost didn't. But the life of a shinobi is a dangerous one. I could be killed on any of the missions I leave on, and I wouldn't want you to not at least have this letter to go on. As I'm writing this, your mother... your beautiful, feisty, stubborn mother is putting you to bed right now. And you are fighting her every step of the way. Who knew a five year old could be so cantankerous?</p><p>Anyway, Sakura-chan, there's a few things you need to know in case I'm gone. You and me, we're the last Haruno, kid. The last of a dying clan. Your mother Mebuki is a Haruno, too, of course. But by marriage. We are the ones with the blood in our veins, we are the ones who may or may not activate the Haruno clan Kekkei Genkai; The Fukai, or 'Deep Self'. Anyway, there's so much to go over, too much here. I guess I shouldn't be saying 'we' if you're reading this... Hopefully I will just be teaching you all this myself when you become a genin, but if not, I've left behind the remaining books I have on the subject.</p><p>Speaking of genin, please don't be mad at your mother for not giving this scroll to you until now. I told her to wait until you passed your Genin Exam. Only then would it be safe, would you be ready for the information and responsibilities. Anyway, the other thing I have left for you is the Haruno Doku Hashi Daisho. These blades have been passed down in our clan for hundreds of years, since before the founding of Konoha, since our origins as a clan of samurai from Tetsu no Kuni. Unfortunately, my father Jira lost the katana in a battle with Iwa during the Third Great Ninja War. Last I knew, the blade was in the possession of the Ashikaga clan of Iwagakure no Sato. If I am dead, retrieving the katana now falls to you, my daughter. Please fulfill this wish for your dear old Tou-chan!</p><p>Oh, little blossom... how I hope and pray to Kami that Mebuki will never have to give you this letter. But if she does... if I am gone, and can no longer be there to protect you... Just know that I am sorry. And I am proud of you. And I believe in you Sakura-chan. I know you can do anything, little blossom. Anything at all! Become Hokage! Open a ramen shop! Learn more ninjutsu than any ninja alive! Become a better medic-ninja than even Tsunade of the Sannin! Revolutionize the whole ninja world! Anything and everything... I truly believe you can, Sakura-chan! I love you to the moon and back, little blossom...</p><p>Love, Your Father, Kizashi</p><p>P.S. I wrote a song for you the other day on my samisen. I included the music notations and lyrics with this letter. Hope you like it!</p><p>The tears that Sakura had managed to previously contain now spilled out, some of them dropping from her face and hitting the letter she still clutched tightly in her hands. Her breath seemed to leave her body for a moment as waves of sadness, happiness, grief, and relief all crashed over her. She sobbed uncontrollably for a few minutes, sucking in deep breaths in a vain attempt to calm herself, only to break down again. At some point in the crying session she worked up the will to flip through the pages behind the letter, the song Kizashi had written for her. She laughed a little when she read the title, Bright Pink Skies. While Sakura couldn't play the samisen and didn't really understand her father's hastily scribbled notations, she was able to read the lyrics, which she felt were both beautiful and touching.</p><p>Finally, several hours after she had begun the entire process, she had stopped crying and finished putting away everything from her father's scroll. The picture was hung on the mirror she used to prepare herself every morning. The letter and song had been put back inside the envelope and stored in one of her drawers for now. The pinkette simply laid in her bed above the covers, sprawled out and looking up at her ceiling. She was lost in her thoughts and feelings, reminiscing about her father and the few memories she had of him. She was a confusing mess of sad and happy at the moment, while at the same time rejuvenated after her dad's words of encouragement and love. The day so far had been a major drain, and Sakura briefly second guessed going to dinner with the rest of Team 7.</p><p>'It would be a pretty crappy move to bail on the first team outing.' Sakura admonished herself in her head, refusing to let herself create a bad impression with her new team.</p><p>'We need this time to get to know one another. It's important and I shouldn't miss it.' The pink-haired genin said to herself, desperately trying to will herself out of bed.</p><p>It eventually worked, and the young woman quickly got dressed in a clean version of her usual ninja attire. As she did so her stomach growled loudly, surprising her. Looking out her window Sakura noticed that the sun had nearly set already, and much more time had passed than she thought. She trekked back downstairs to gather the last of her things and say goodbye to her mother. Mebuki was in the living room, listening to Konoha Radio One and knitting something Sakura couldn't quite make out.</p><p>"Bye Kaa-san!" Sakura called out as she passed the living room, "I'm heading out to eat dinner with my team! I'll be back later, okay?"</p><p>Mebuki waved from her position on their couch, "Have a good time, Sakura-chan! I'll be up if you need to talk!"</p><p>"Thanks but no thanks!" Sakura yelled as she finished putting on her shoes and left through the front door.</p><p>The warm air from earlier in the day had stuck around after the sunset, but it was still much cooler than it had been around midday. Despite the earlier crush of civilians and ninja alike, the streets of Konoha seemed to be even busier. Sakura chalked it up to the small dip in temperature and Konoha's general preference for nightlife. The young Haruno heir traversed the busy walkways at a brisk pace, hoping she wouldn't be late. Then again, with how her sensei had behaved this morning, she doubted she would be the last to arrive. Her thoughts were preoccupied by her father's letter, and she found it difficult to cast off the melancholy mood that had settled over her.</p><p>The pinkette arrived at Yakiniku BBQ just a few minutes after seven o'clock. Business was booming in Konoha, and Yakiniku was one of the clear winners in the restaurant race. The barbecue shack was always packed, and tonight was no exception. When Sakura entered the shop she was immediately hit by the sounds of Yakiniku's patrons, cramped together at tables, booths, and barstools. Sakura briefly wondered if Team 7 would be able to find a place to sit. Just as the thought crossed her mind, however, she heard her name called out through the din.</p><p>"Sakura! Sakura, over here! SAKURA!" Oda called out from where he was sitting, waving his arms around to help get his teammate's attention.</p><p>The pinkette glared at the Yoshimaru heir for drawing attention to them, though the glare was short-lived as Sakura recognized the boy had few other choices to get her attention. As she approached the table she noticed that both Naruto and Kakashi were already seated as well. She could not hide her surprise at seeing their sensei had beaten her to the shop.</p><p>"You're here already too, Kakashi-sensei?" She asked incredulously as she sat at the table, taking a seat next to Naruto and across from Oda and Kakashi.</p><p>"Ma, ma, why wouldn't I be?" The masked man asked, "I said seven, right?"</p><p>The three genin cast the same incredulous look toward their sensei, a coordinated move that Kakashi was sure he would be seeing a lot of in the future. The silver-haired man simply shrugged his shoulders, offering no further defense of himself. Sakura smiled slightly at her sensei and his antics, finding that she was already growing comfortable with the man that would be teaching her and guiding her future. Something about the jonin was rather disarming, though Sakura realized most high level ninja were likely capable of producing that effect on others at will.</p><p>Sakura took a moment to look over her other two teammates as well. Oda seemed to be in good spirits, as he generally was. The black-haired youth had broken his chopsticks in half, and was now using them as tiny swords for each of his hands, which were locked in an epic confrontation with one another. Naruto, on the other hand, seemed distant and aloof. His usual easy-going grin was gone, and in its place was a tight line. His eyes were cast down toward the table as well, and he had only looked up long enough to give Sakura a greeting when she had sat down. The pinkette wondered what had happened to the blonde to change his mood, before remembering what she had just gone through herself. She made a promise to herself to reach out to her teammate when she could find some one on one time with him.</p><p>Sakura was interrupted from her thoughts by their waiter approaching the table. The man was rather tall, with a handsome face and gorgeous, long blonde hair that went down past his butt. He reminded Sakura of a younger, more muscular Inoichi. He placed four waters on the table before taking out a pen and pad.</p><p>"Welcome to Yakiniku's dear friends! My name is Kishi and I'll be your server today! What can I get started for you?" His voice was charismatic and full of energy as he prepared to take their order.</p><p>"I'll have the Harami Skirt Steak in Miso Marinade please, medium-rare with extra barbecue sauce on the side. I'll also take a bottle of Kagawa Soju as well. " Kakashi responded curtly before handing over his menu.</p><p>"Excellent choice, that's a house favorite!" Kishi chimed in before turning to look at Oda expectantly.</p><p>"Well since Kaka-sensei is paying," The Yoshimari heir began, causing sweat to break out on Kakashi's brow as he considered what the bill may look like, "I'll take the Angus Kalbi Short Rib with Sweet Soy, well done. I also want a small order of Crab Rangoon, an Egg Roll, and an order of Kake Butter Yaki. I'll take a black tea to drink."</p><p>Kakashi, Sakura, and even Naruto looked at Oda as if he had grown a second head. The boy just smiled back at his teammates.</p><p>"Okay, got it," Kishi replied after a moment of furious scribbling, "Good choices by the way."</p><p>When Sakura noticed that the waiter was now looking at her expectantly, she panicked a bit, "Uh, erm… I'll have what Kakashi-sensei ordered… and an order of edamame. Oh, and a cup of green tea and honey please!"</p><p>She hadn't really had a chance to look over the menu, so she had simply taken the easy way out and copied Kakashi's order. She also knew that Yakiniku had good edamame so she went with a safe bet on that as well. Finally, the attention of everyone at the table fell on Naruto, who was still skimming his menu with a despondent look on his face.</p><p>"And for you, sir?" Kishi asked after a moment of awkward silence.</p><p>Naruto sighed and handed over his menu, "I'll just take a small order of Crab Rangoon and an order of Shrimp Tempura. I'll have a small bottle of that same soju as well."</p><p>"No entrée?" Kishi questioned politely as he gathered the last of the menus.</p><p>When Naruto shook his head in the negative, Kishi smiled and nodded, "Okay, sounds good folks! I'll have your drinks right out and have your food cooking ASAP!"</p><p>With that the waiter rushed off, on his way to put their orders in and then scurry to the next table full of customers. The four members of the newly formed Team 7 sat in a semi-awkward silence for a moment. Kakashi simply looked between his three students, attempting to get a read on them. Oda was content to continue messing around with his chopsticks, and Naruto kept sulking. Sakura was following Kakashi's example and observing everyone at the table. In the pinkette's opinion, the silver-haired jonin had his work cut out for him.</p><p>"So," Kakashi began, drawing his students' attention to him, "You guys are now officially genin. Who did you rush to share the good news with?"</p><p>Oda tossed his broken chopsticks down on the table and smacked his fist into his open palm, "Hell yeah! I ran straight home to tell my Okaa-san and Otou-san! They were super excited for me!"</p><p>Kakashi eye-smiled at Oda's clear enthusiasm about becoming a ninja, "That's good to hear. How about you Sakura?"</p><p>The pink-haired genin gave a tiny smile that was a long way off from reaching her eyes, "Well, I shared the news with my Kaa-san. My Tou-san died several years ago, so… I was going to tell Ino and her parents too, but I haven't had the time yet."</p><p>Kakashi nodded, eye-smiling at Sakura as well, "Are you close with the rest of the Yamanaka clan? I remember you said Ino was your best friend."</p><p>"Yeah," The pinkette replied softly, her smile growing a bit stronger, "Ino and I have been best friends for years, so I know her father Inoichi and her mother Kiku very well. They've been there for me like a second family."</p><p>"That's good," The silver-haired jonin commented before turning his attention to his blonde-haired student, "And you, Naruto?"</p><p>Sakura looked toward the boy out of the corner of her eye. She was surprised to find that Naruto had already been looking at her with a strange look in his eyes, though she had no idea what had drawn his attention. The usually upbeat Uzumaki heir slowly turned toward Kakashi and shrugged his shoulders.</p><p>"I told Hiru-jiji, that's it," Naruto remarked, "I haven't seen anyone else I'd like to tell. Baa-chan already knows, so no point there."</p><p>Kakashi gave Naruto the same genuine eye-smile that he had given his other two students, "Hmm, Hiruzen-sama must have been awfully proud. And don't worry, your other important people will know soon enough I'm sure…"</p><p>The silver-haired man's mention of the Sandaime seemed to further sour Naruto's mood, which confused Sakura. She filed the reaction away in the back of her mind for later use or exploration. Just as she worked up the courage to ask Naruto if everything was okay, Kishi came back to their table with some of their food and drinks.</p><p>"Okay folks, here we go," The waiter said as he began setting things down on the table, "We got a black tea, a cup of green tea with honey, and two small bottles of the Kagawa Soju."</p><p>He set the drinks down in front of each of them before moving on to the food, "We've also got your appetizers here… an order of edamame, an order of the Kake Butter Yaki, an egg roll, an order of Shrimp Tempura and two small orders of Crab Rangoon!"</p><p>Kishi then quickly placed each plate in front of their respective diners, missing only a single step when he accidently gave the Shrimp Tempura to Oda and the Kake Butter Yaki to Naruto. Kakashi stealthily swapped the plates when Kishi wasn't looking, saving the man from the embarrassment of realizing his mistake. Once all the food was on the table, the waiter bowed and offered his thanks.</p><p>"Those entrées will be out shortly!" Kishi called as he rushed off to the next table.</p><p>"Pretty fast service considering it's so busy." Kakashi remarked as he watched his students dig into their appetizers after a quick 'Itadakimasu!'.</p><p>Oda nodded vigorously and spoke through a mouthful of crab rangoon, "Mhmm, Yaki's is… alwa-... that!"</p><p>"Ma, ma, remember your manners, Oda." Kakashi admonished lightly as the rest of Team 7 tried to decipher what the Yoshimaru heir had said.</p><p>Naruto scoffed at the masked man, "Don't bother Kakashi-sensei. Iruka-sensei could never get through to Oda, and Iruka-sensei is the best teacher in the whole of Precinct 13."</p><p>The silver-haired jonin simply tousled Oda's hair, causing the boy to glower at him, "Ne, don't worry about that Naruto. Us jonin sensei are in a league of our own. I'll work some manners into the knucklehead here, and maybe even some ninja techniques as well if he's lucky."</p><p>Sakura giggled at the interaction despite her sad mood, smiling at the look of contempt Oda was shooting at their sensei. Even Naruto had a small smirk on his face now. The mood lightened considerably and Team 7 began conversing in earnest as each of them ate on their appetizers and drank their beverages. Kakashi led most of the talk, with Oda chiming in the most and Naruto chiming in the least, surprisingly. Before long, however, the small talk was interrupted by Kishi returning to their table with the main course.</p><p>After the waiter left and Team 7 renewed their assault on their food, Sakura began to wonder something about her sensei. No matter how many times she looked over, she never saw him with his mask down. Yet, his food was disappearing from his plate in regular intervals.</p><p>"How do you eat with that mask on, sensei?" Sakura finally asked abruptly, causing Kakashi to stare at her.</p><p>"Hmm, well, it takes a lot of talent and skill," Kakashi said, "Maybe one day all three of you will achieve the same success."</p><p>"Che, yeah right! I can't put a mask over this beautiful mug!" Oda cried out with a chuckle.</p><p>Kakashi and Sakura laughed, and Naruto shook his head and scoffed at the boy's antics. Sakura spied a tiny smile on the corner of the blonde's lips, however. Something was clearly still weighing the last Uzumaki down, but slowly he was warming up to his team and pulling himself out of his funk. For whatever reason this brought a smile to Sakura's face. Confused and a little alarmed by her sudden thoughts and feelings, she shifted her focus to her meal. The steak was delicious, but part of her recalled the steak Naruto had given her much earlier in the day. Somehow, someway, Naruto's had turned out better.</p><p>'Maybe it's in the marinade?' Sakura wondered.</p><p>For a little while there wasn't much talk between Team 7, as they chose instead to focus on the food in front of them. Soon, however, most of the food was gone and the thoroughly satisfied ninja were relaxing and sipping on their drinks.</p><p>"So I know we gave our introductions already," Kakashi started, brushing some crumbs off the front of his jonin vest, "But I want us to get to know one another better. It will help form solid bonds and increase the power of our teamwork."</p><p>"So, like, what should we say exactly?" Oda asked, this time without a mouth full of food.</p><p>Sakura sipped her green tea, idly watching Naruto out of the corner of her eye while waiting for Kakashi's answer. The blonde boy appeared to only be half listening, staring intently into his cup of soju.</p><p>"Well," The silver-haired sensei began, putting a hand to his chin, "Pretty much whatever you want t-"</p><p>Kakashi was cut off as two ninja that Sakura didn't recognize joined their table suddenly. One of them, a woman with long brown hair and purple stripes painted on her cheeks, budged her way into the booth next to Sakura. The other one, a man with spiky black hair and his headband pulled down like Kakashi's, forced his way into the opposite booth next to Kakashi.</p><p>"Kaka-baka! How's it going? Having a good time with your little ones?" The man asked, slinging one of his arms around Kakashi's shoulders and pulling him close.</p><p>Sakura's eyes widened a bit, looking back and forth between the new arrivals and Kakashi. She briefly noted that a large grin had overtaken Naruto's face, and she realized that he recognized the two new additions.</p><p>"Obito-chan! Rin-kun! What are you doing here?" Naruto asked, excitement clear in his voice as he looked between the two.</p><p>Sakura noted the odd use of suffixes Naruto had employed, as well as his obviously positive feelings toward both Obito and Rin. The women reached across Sakura and tousled Naruto's hair, causing the boy to draw back and wave the woman off with a smile.</p><p>"We just couldn't stay away from our two favorite troublemakers! Isn't that right Obito-kun?" Rin said with a grin of her own.</p><p>The man, now identified as Obito, gave Rin a smirk and a thumbs up with his free hand, "You know it Rin-chan! Just had to join the fun over here when we walked by and saw you! And to think, Kakashi didn't even tell us you would all be here!"</p><p>From the now deadpan look on Kakashi's face, Sakura guessed there was a reason for that. Still, she began to relax around the two friendly ninja as she realized they were known associates of her sensei. The pinkette watched Kakashi put his face in his hands and mumble something.</p><p>"What was that, Kakashi-kun? You'll have to speak up." Rin prodded her teammate as she picked at the leftovers on the table.</p><p>Kakashi leaned back, crossed his arms, and sighed heavily before responding, "I take all this time over the last two days to build up this air of cool and mystery, and you come in and ruin it in seconds…"</p><p>Everyone at the table grinned at that, with Obito and Rin taking particular delight in Kakashi's annoyance.</p><p>"Um, I'm sorry, but… who are you guys, again?" Oda asked after finally working up the courage to interrupt the three apparent friends.</p><p>"Where are my manners? And after just reprimanding you for bad manners," The silver-haired jonin remarked, "This beauty beside Sakura is Nohara Rin, an accomplished jonin of Konoha. This hooligan beside me is Uchiha Obito, another jonin, though how that happened I have no idea…"</p><p>Rin smirked at her introduction, while Obito gasped dramatically and appeared highly insulted by Kakashi's remarks. Oda was eying them both with a look of curiosity now, and Sakura too was wondering how they all knew one another. She had a good guess, though, from how they all acted around one another.</p><p>"I take offense, good sir!" Obito cried out in feigned indignation, "I am the jewel upon the crown of Konoha!"</p><p>Naruto sniggered at the response, as did Rin. Sakura simply quirked a brow at the rather exuberant shinobi. Oda was grinning and appeared to Sakura like he decided that he liked these two. Sakura's attention was drawn to Naruto as he poured two cups from his bottle of soju, then slid them to Rin and Obito.</p><p>"Don't let him fool you," Naruto chimed in, pouring the last of his bottle into his own cup as he addressed Oda, "This man is Gokin no Obito, also known as Iron Obito, one of the two ninja that make up the fabled Tatsu Sore Wa. He's a legend."</p><p>Everyone at the table, even Obito, looked at Naruto in surprise.</p><p>"What?" The blonde asked, uncomfortable with the staring, "It's not like any of that is hard information to obtain."</p><p>Obito grinned as he recovered from his shock, "Man the Academy is really teaching them right these days!"</p><p>"Please," Rin interrupted, "Don't let that head of yours fill with hot air Obito-kun."</p><p>Sakura was content to watch the back and forth play out with a small smile on her face. She had nothing to say, really, at least at the moment. Naruto and Kakashi were both intimately familiar with Rin and Obito, and thus drove a large portion of the conversation. Oda likewise decided to stay on the quiet side, observing the interactions and chiming in here and there. Both Sakura and Oda had introduced themselves at some point, but the pinkette hadn't said much else besides that. As the night wore on Sakura became more and more lost in thoughts about her father and her clan, and less and less involved with the table full of people in front of her.</p><p>Eventually Kakashi seemed to realize that his planned team bonding had been hijacked and derailed by his two teammates. Sakura watched as he began to slowly steer the conversation to a close. It was past nine now, and Sakura and her teammates were beginning to show the signs of their weariness.</p><p>"Alright, alright, that's enough," Kakashi remarked, "It's time to call it a night."</p><p>"So soon?" Obito asked incredulously.</p><p>"They've been here a while, Obito-kun. We should let them get going." Rin responded, giving the man a look Sakura didn't quite recognize.</p><p>"Besides," The silver-haired jonin chimed in, "My little students are reaching the ends of their stamina it appears."</p><p>The cyclops pointed over to Oda, who was nodding off next to him. Sakura watched the boy's head bob back and forth slightly, slowly, nearly hitting the table every time. The pinkette's own eyelids were drooping low at this point as well, and she rubbed them furiously for a moment. Only Naruto appeared unaffected by the late hour, though the blonde was clearly sad about the good time coming to an end.</p><p>"Alright, alright, fine," Obito said as he began to get up from the booth, "It's been fun, brats. I'm sure we will see each other around soon. Later, Kaka-baka!"</p><p>Rin stood up to leave as well, smiling down at Kakashi's team as she did so, "It was nice meeting you, Sakura-chan, Oda-kun! See you later Kakashi-kun! Bye, Naruto-kun!"</p><p>The members of Team 7 each gave their own farewells to the two ninja. Kakashi scooted out of the booth as well after his teammates were gone. He had paid for the entire meal already, as well as tipped, so there was nothing else to take care of.</p><p>"Okay, team, it's been fun," Kakashi remarked, eye-smiling at his team and waving, "Meet me at Training Ground 9 tomorrow at 8 a.m. See ya!"</p><p>With that, the man vanished in a swirl of wind and leaves.</p><p>"Does he have to use Shunshin everywhere he goes?" Naruto asked before he quickly drained his last cup of soju.</p><p>His only response was a light snore from Oda and silence from Sakura. The pink-haired genin had become lost in thought once more, staring down at the table. Naruto nudged her with his elbow to snap her back to attention, earning a small glare from the girl as reward.</p><p>"What?" She asked sharply, a bit harsher than she had meant to.</p><p>"Nothing really," Naruto replied sarcastically, "We should probably wake Oda up and head home though."</p><p>Sakura glanced around, noting that Yakiniku's was nearly empty now. Oda was sleeping on the table at this point, a small line of drool hanging down from his mouth. Kishi had long since cleaned their table of dirty dishes, so there was plenty of space for the Yoshimaru heir to rest his head. Sakura nudged the black-haired boy on the shoulder a couple time, but he didn't budge or wake up.</p><p>"Want to leave 'im?" Naruto asked playfully, smirking at the pinkette.</p><p>Sakura punched Naruto on the shoulder lightly, though there was a small smirk on her face as well, "We can't do that to him, Naruto-yaro! Help me wake him up."</p><p>Between grumbling about bossy know-it-alls and sleepy teammates, the last Uzumaki helped Sakura prod Oda awake. The boy was still a bit disoriented, but by the time his two teammates helped him out onto the streets of Konoha he was alert enough to see himself home. The three stood together in a moment of silence, enjoying the cool night breeze.</p><p>"That was a rather interesting dinner." Sakura said as the three looked between each other.</p><p>Oda rubbed his eyes tiredly and nodded, "Mm… was fun. Seems like we have an interesting sensei."</p><p>"One who has some interesting friends, too." Sakura said, scratching her left cheek with her index finger.</p><p>Naruto chuckled and shook his head, "You don't know the half of it. Looks like we have our work cut out for us."</p><p>The blonde genin looked a bit bashful for a moment before sticking his fist out toward his two teammates. Sakura looked down at it questioningly.</p><p>"To a new beginning as Team 7." Naruto announced, drawing a smirk from Oda and a small smile from Sakura.</p><p>The pinkette extended her fist to his, and felt Oda's bump up against the both of them.</p><p>"To Team 7." They said in unison.</p><p>The three genin let their fists fall back to their sides, each of them still smiling at the others. Sakura felt her heart swell a bit, and she realized she was much more comfortable with her two teammates after just two days of opening up to them. She was taking Kakashi's words to heart, that these two other genin on her team would be there for her through thick and thin, as she should be for them.</p><p>"A'right… I gotta… go." Oda said slowly as he started stumbling off toward his house.</p><p>"Don't forget! Training Ground 9, 8 am!" Sakura called out.</p><p>The Yoshimaru heir flashed them a thumbs up and sauntered away into the darkness.</p><p>"Your house is near the center of Konoha isn't it?" Naruto asked Sakura once Oda was out of sight, "Not far from the Sarutobi clan compound?"</p><p>Sakura glanced over at the blonde, taking in his features in the soft glow of the shop lights which cascaded out into the street where they stood. Her eyes drifted across Naruto's whiskered cheeks and Sakura realized she had never gotten an answer as to what they were or where they came from. She also realized that they made his face much, much cuter.</p><p>"Sakura?" Naruto asked, finally getting the pinkette's attention.</p><p>"Ah, er, sorry," The pink-haired genin stuttered uncharacteristicly, "I do, actually. My house is only a few minutes away from the Sarutobi compound."</p><p>"Then I'll walk you home." The blonde replied, already starting to walk in the general direction of the Haruno residence.</p><p>A vein throbbed in Sakura's forehead and she shook her fist at the boy as she started walking after him, "I don't need to be walked home, yaro! I can take care of myself!"</p><p>Naruto threw his hands up in a placating gesture, "Hey, I know that. I'm just being polite, and besides it's on the way."</p><p>The pinkette calmed at his words, realizing he hadn't meant it as she had taken it. She caught up to the blonde and they began walking side by side on the way to Sakura's home. There was a comfortable silence between the two that Sakura yearned to break for some reason, but she couldn't bring herself to do it. The words would die in her throat as she moved to speak, and so she would say nothing. Naruto seemed content not to make conversation as well, seeming to be lost in his own thoughts.</p><p>"So…" Naruto was the first one to break the silence finally, just as they began to get close to Sakura's home.</p><p>"So?" Sakura inquired.</p><p>"I don't know," The Uzumaki heir started, "I just felt like something was bothering you at the dinner. Wanted to see if you were okay?"</p><p>Sakura hid her surprise at Naruto's line of questioning. She was shocked he had picked up on cues she thought she had well hidden.</p><p>"I was going to ask you the same, actually," Sakura replied, sidestepping a question she didn't know if she had an answer to, "You seemed off all night. Is there anything going on? You seemed fine at the test this morning…"</p><p>The blonde almost missed a step, and Sakura realized she had returned the favor and caught him off guard. She smiled at the small victory.</p><p>"Yeah, yeah," Naruto said, "Everything's fine. Just, you know, finding out a lot of heavy things… things about being a ninja and all…</p><p>When the blonde trailed off Sakura knew he simply wasn't ready to share any more than what he had. They began to near Sakura's house, and Naruto walked with her all the way up to her porch. The two paused near the door, and Sakura looked up into Naruto's crystal cerulean eyes.</p><p>"Since we are a team now, I expect you to come to me if you need to talk about things. I can listen." Sakura explained with a no nonsense air, hands on her hips.</p><p>Naruto looked at her with a bit of surprise in his eyes once again, "Got it. Thanks, Sakura. I extend the same courtesy to you. Good night."</p><p>He bowed slightly then departed with a wave.</p><p>"Good night!" The pinkette called out as she watched him walk off toward the Sarutobi clan compound.</p><p>Sakura entered her home with a smile on her face, a smile that stayed there until she fell asleep in her bed not long after she got home. The pink-haired genin had honestly had a great time despite the heavy issues weighing on her, and she could not wait until tomorrow when her team would finally start working on training and missions.</p><p>The next morning Sakura awoke feeling very refreshed. A part of her grief over her father had been processed yesterday and she now had some sense of closure and a reinforced connection with Kizashi. The excellent sleep probably had something to do with it as well. For the first night in months Sakura had slept through the night. Riding the wave of this newfound energy, the pinkette quickly got dressed in her usual shinobi attire with the addition of the pendant from her father.</p><p>Sakura prepared a bagel and fresh strawberry jam for a quick breakfast and left her home headed for Training Ground 9. She yelled a farewell to her mother Mebuki in case the woman was up as she shut the door behind her. After about ten minutes of rooftop hopping, Sakura arrived at Training Ground 9 about thirty minutes before eight. She had wanted to get there early in order to finish reading a scroll on the introduction to medical ninjutsu.</p><p>She was surprised to see that Naruto, Oda, and Kakashi were all already there, standing around idly chatting with one another. Her mouth dropped open a bit in shock. Extended finger shaking in the air, Sakura pointed at each of them in disbelief.</p><p>"Are you going to make a habit of being the last to show up, Sakura?" Kakashi asked with a laugh as he flipped a page of his current copy of Icha Icha.</p><p>The girl in question crossed her arms and huffed, fuming for a moment as her teammates shared a laugh at her expense.</p><p>"At least I wasn't four hours late, sensei! In fact, I'm early!" Sakura yelled at the silver-haired man, shaking one of her fists at him.</p><p>Kakashi put his hands up in a defensive gesture, "Ma, ma, I'm sorry about that. But don't worry, that is a thing of the past. Now that you are officially my team, I'll be here on time every day. I expect the same of you. I'm pleasantly surprised that you are all early, actually."</p><p>"Hey!" Oda broke in to the conversation, indignant, "What are you implying, Kakashi-sensei?"</p><p>The jonin ignored the Yoshimaru heir's question in favor of starting his lesson, "So, let's begin. We are going over a few important things today. First and foremost, our talk during dinner last night was interrupted, so we will be sharing some personal information with one another again."</p><p>"What kind of information?" Sakura interjected.</p><p>"How personal?" Naruto asked at nearly the same time.</p><p>Kakashi shrugged his shoulders, "As personal as you want it. Share what you want and don't share what you don't want. Our goal is to become a tighter unit, so try not to hold too much back."</p><p>Seeing his students nodding in understanding, the silver-haired jonin continued, "After that, we will be going over evaluations of your strengths and weaknesses, as well as discussing how you want to move forward as a ninja. Lastly, we will be discovering your chakra natures as well as discussing your personalized training regimens."</p><p>Each of the assembled genin's faces slowly grew brighter and brighter as Kakashi went on. Excitement bubbled in Sakura's stomach as she thought of what her chakra nature would be.</p><p>"Sensei, what about missions?" The Yoshimaru heir asked curiously.</p><p>"Ah, yes, those," Kakashi remarked, clapping his hands together and eye-smiling, "For these first two weeks, we won't be taking any missions. Instead, we will focus exclusively on training. The first week will be one on one, and the second week will focus on the foundation of your teamwork."</p><p>Naruto slapped a fist into his open palm, grinning at the prospects, "Alright! Let's go!"</p><p>Kakashi smiled at the enthusiasm and pointed at Naruto, "You first then blondie!"</p><p>"Che, fine, no problem," Naruto began, looking around at each of his teammates for a moment as he thought briefly about what he would say, "Uh, let's see, I prefer to fight with traps and ninjutsu, I've spent most of the last three years training. Mostly on the basics, or 'the foundation of all ninja' as Hiru-jiji puts it. I can do a Kawarimi with no seals, and nearly no chakra. I ca-"</p><p>"Are you just going to list off your skills?" Sakura interrupted.</p><p>"Yeah that's not very personal Naruto-teme!" Oda said while cleaning some earwax from his ear. He flicked it at Naruto in quasi protest.</p><p>Naruto waved them both off, "Fine, fine. Um… I was afraid of clowns as a little kid and they still freak me out. I play the samisen because it calms me down and brings me focus when I'm stressed. I have a small list of precious people that I aim to protect and help accomplish their dreams. Once when I was five I stole a bowl of ramen from Old Man Ichiraku and I've never forgiven myself… I want to become the greatest Hokage in history in order to prove to the people of Konoha that I am worthwhile and want the best for them. And to carry on the mantle of Hokage in Hiru-jiji's name."</p><p>The blonde paused and took a breath, and Sakura noticed she was not the only one with a surprised look on her face.</p><p>"I don't really want to share anymore for now." The blonde genin noted after catching his breath.</p><p>Kakashi clapped his hands a few times in brief applause, "No need, Naruto. That was more than enough for starters. We don't need to lay out our entire life stories today. Oda?"</p><p>The black-haired boy put his hands behind his head and grinned, "Eh, well, I'm nervous, I don't really want to… but, uh, well I guess one thing about me is I haven't activated my clan's Kekkei Genkai yet… which has me worried, honestly. But yeah, um, I also like rock climbing. I climb on the Hokage Monument's western face. I'm a slacker, but I'm trying to change that. I think I'm just afraid of failing, especially failing my clan. And I, yeah, well… I'll tell you more later."</p><p>Sakura and Naruto both watched the Yoshimaru heir curiously, more used to his boisterous nature rather than this abashed version. The pinkette considered the fact that the boy likely wasn't used to sharing intimate details about himself. None of them really were. Speaking of which…</p><p>"Sakura, you're up." Kakashi chimed, crossing his arms and leaning against a nearby tree.</p><p>Sakura scratched her left cheek with her index finger, feeling some nervousness bubbling in her stomach, "I don't really know what to say? Um, I spend most of my time training, reading, or gardening... My favorite branch of techniques is ninjutsu. My clan also has a Kekkei Genkai, though I haven't activated it yet and don't know if I ever will. So you're not alone there Oda… uhh, I'm a terrible cook? I like the color maroon a lot. And I dislike dango cause its usually way too sweet and syrupy…"</p><p>Their jonin sensei clapped his hands together once more, "Congratulations! We made it past step one, nice job. Every day we will share something new about ourselves before training. Now, on to the evaluations!"</p><p>"Hold up!" Naruto yelled, holding up an open palm in a 'stop right there' motion, "You still have to say some stuff, Kakashi-sensei! You're a part of Team 7 too!"</p><p>The silver-haired jonin put a hand to his chin in a gesture of deep thought, "Oh yeah, I guess I didn't say anything. Let's see… my best friends are Uchiha Obito, Nohara Rin, and Maito Gai. I have been a shinobi longer than you all have been alive. I like green tea. I enjoy painting which I sometimes do in my spare time. I am a convert of the Religion of Dango Goodness, currently practicing at Daru's Divine Dumplings every other day or so. What else? My main focus in life right now is to train you all into the best ninja you can be. Satisfied?"</p><p>Sakura and her teammates all nodded their heads, filing the information about their sensei into the back of their minds. The pinkette was honestly looking forward to the sharing sessions before each day of training, and now with some forewarning she could prepare what she wanted to say during the night before.</p><p>"Moving on," Kakashi said, drawing Sakura from her thoughts, "The evaluations today will be pretty brief, no physical tests or anything. They will grow more complicated and extensive as we progress. For today, at least, I'd like each of you to tell me what you can do as a ninja, where your skills lie so to speak. Something like a self-evaluation. Then I will give you my notes from the research I've done and what I experienced during your Genin Exam. Understood?"</p><p>A chorus of "Yes, sensei!" rang out from Team 7.</p><p>"Naruto, let's start with you again. Be honest and forthcoming..." The silver-haired jonin remarked casually, pointing a finger at Naruto before flipping a page in his Icha Icha book.</p><p>"Always am," The blonde said with a smirk, "So, self-evaluation huh? Well, I was Rookie of the Year, that should speak for itself. I feel like I'm around chunin level in most of my skills, but it's hard to gage my own skill level sometimes. My strengths would be… ninjutsu for sure, since I have a pretty large chakra pool and I'm already building a nice ninjutsu repertoire. Planning and laying traps is another one. Uh, my taijutsu is pretty strong too, according to Hiru-jiji. I use the Ruijinken (Great Ape Fist) as my preferred fighting style. I am proficient with a staff as well, which works with my style."</p><p>The young Uzumaki took a breathe then continued, "My weaknesses… hmm, definitely genjutsu. I can barely perform the simplest ones. The only illusion I'm even close to being good with is Henge, and I have trouble dispelling genjutsu as well. Another weakness is I sometimes charge into different situations head first, relying on my skill to think up plans on the fly a little too much… yeah, that's about it."</p><p>The sensei of Team 7 was nodding along as Naruto spoke, seemingly pleased with his responses. Sakura was a little surprised, as she knew Naruto taijutsu was a bit different than they were taught at the Academy, but she had no idea he had learned any entirely new style.</p><p>"That was great Naruto," Kakashi remarked, pushing off the tree he had been leaning on and putting his copy of Icha Icha in his vest pocket, "One strength I would say you forgot to mention is the heaviness of your taijutsu strikes. You have a lot of strength and make good use of momentum and angles to land powerful and damaging strikes. Another one would be your unorthodox methods of planning. Being unpredictable will make throwing your opponents off your game that much easier."</p><p>Here Kakashi paused in thought for a moment before continuing, "A couple weaknesses I would like to mention; one, you need to work on your stealth skills. There were easy signs for my clones to follow which allowed me to find and destroy your traps. Two, you should work on your sensory abilities. Knowing that you were the strongest of the genin, I had a clone follow you the entire exam. You never noticed him even once. So we will work on that as well."</p><p>The blonde ninja nodded vigorously, burning the words into his mind for the future. Sakura could tell there was a little hit to his pride from Kakashi's remark about tailing him the entire exam. The pinkette hoped she wouldn't learn something similar about her own performance. She glanced over at Oda and saw that he looked nervous as well. As the dead last, and the one who did worst in the exam, his turn would likely be brutal…</p><p>"Sakura, you're up." The cyclops remarked, looking her way.</p><p>The young woman took a deep breath and nodded, "Okay. I… hm, well, my strengths are my knowledge base, my use of strategy and tactics, my trap making, and my chakra control. I'm pretty good at genjutsu but I don't know very many. My taijutsu and ninjutsu scores in the Academy were second only to Naruto. I can read really fast and have a photographic memory, so I guess that's a strength? That's about it, I think…"</p><p>"As for weaknesses," Here Sakura paused, scratching her cheek again as she thought, "Well, I've always thought of myself as a jack of all trades, Master of none. Which can be really bad. Also my physical conditioning is pretty good but it could be better. I don't feel like I have a lot of power in my punches… what else? Sometimes my confidence can bottom out and get in the way of my success when I second guess myself. Kind of like I did in the exam."</p><p>Kakashi nodded some more, enjoying his team's breakdowns so far. Sakura and Naruto had been refreshingly honest in their evaluations.</p><p>"Good, good," Kakashi began, "A couple things I would add; one, you have a great strength in your analytical mind, and very keen observation skills. Those strengths will do you well in your career as a kunoichi if you continue to hone them. Two, you have a stubbornness born from needing to prove yourself. Letting go of that will take you a long way toward your goals."</p><p>Sakura nodded at the assessment, pleased at the compliments and happy for the criticisms that gave her something to work on. This was exactly what would make her grow better and stronger as a ninja. With her part done for now, the pinkette looked to the Yoshimaru heir.</p><p>"Guess that just leaves me, huh?" Oda remarked, kicking at the ground in a nervous manner as all eyes turned to him, "Right, right. Err, well, there's not much to say. I was the dead last, and that was for a reason. I didn't pay enough attention to my studies and barely passed the Academy exam. If I had to say I had a strength, it would be my instincts. I guess? I don't know… because of certain traits from my clan, I have more animalistic instincts which can help me avoid certain situations or read through someone's character. I can get a good sense of people really fast. Otherwise I'm just all weaknesses. I don't have very good chakra control, I don't have a large pool. I don't know much more than what they taught us at the Academy because my parents never even bothered to become ninja. Um, yeah, that's about it I guess…"</p><p>Kakashi wagged his finger and gave the young Yoshimaru a 'tsk tsk' sound, "Ma, ma, don't beat yourself up too much Oda. Everyone has to start somewhere."</p><p>The silver-haired man paused for a moment, then continued, "I would say I saw some strengths from you in the exam, and out of it. You're charismatic, and you can talk to people well when you want to. You can be disarming and this can be used very effectively in our line of work if you train hard. You also seem to have a better grasp of your emotions than most of your peers, and from what I can tell you're a pretty good actor."</p><p>Oda was smiling a thousand watt smile during Kakashi's brief monologue, until the end that is. After the silver-haired jonin's last remark, the boy looked a tad confused for a moment before a look Sakura couldn't place passed over his face and he looked at Kakashi as if seeing him for the first time.</p><p>"Other than that, yeah, it's mostly weaknesses from you, sorry." The cyclops said with a light tone and a grin.</p><p>Oda nearly face-vaulted at the turn around, but instead he just nodded solemnly and accepted the truth of the situation.</p><p>"However, let me be clear," Kakashi continued, a bit of steel in his voice now, "Your standing in the Academy? Forget it, it doesn't matter now. I've seen dead lasts go on to become respectable jonin powerhouses. I've also seen Rookies of the Year die as genin before ever making anything of themselves. So from now on, you're all on equal footing. Got it?"</p><p>Another chorus of "Yes, sensei!" echoed around the clearing of Training Ground 9.</p><p>"Good," Their sensei responded, his tone back to light and friendly, "Now, let's go over where you want to be heading as a ninja. What's in your future? Let's start with you Oda."</p><p>"I want to restore the Yoshimaru clan to greatness, so I need to activate my Kekkei Genkai; the Arashibutso, otherwise known as 'Animal Storm'." Oda said confidently, trying to get back to his usual persona.</p><p>"Let me stop you there," Kakashi remarked, "I can't really help any of you with your Kekkei Genkai, if you have them. Especially not activation. So let's put that to the side for now, and focus on your other skills as a ninja."</p><p>"Okay, well, I primarily want to focus on ninjutsu and taijutsu. I want to be a tank who can dish out more damage than I can take, and I want to be able to take a lot. My style of fighting has always been up close and personal so I'd like to stick with that. If I do ever activate my Kekkei Genkai then this type of fighting style will compliment it well. Eventually I want to be a jonin who takes missions all over the world in order to build back the renown of the Yoshimaru clan." Oda said, puffing out his chest a bit and trying to look regal.</p><p>"That I can work with," Their sensei said, eye-smiling at his student, "We will make sure to go back over the basics with you, too, and strengthen your foundation. Sakura?"</p><p>The pinkette, who had subtly been watching Naruto out of the corner of her eye, nearly jumped as her name was said.</p><p>She smiled nervously at Kakashi, pulling on a loose strand of her hair absentmindedly, "Well, I still want to be a jack of all trades, I just want to be better at everything. I'd like to learn medical jutsu as well as more ninjutsu too. I need to work on my chakra pool and increase its size for sure. My role on the team should likely be mid to short range I would think. I would also like to learn kenjutsu, since my father left me his blades. I'd like to one day become a well rounded jonin so I can become a sensei to the next generation."</p><p>"Very nice," The cyclops started, smiling at Sakura as well, "Lots to work with there. We can definitely create a good training regimen to get you going. How about you Naruto?"</p><p>The blonde genin smirked, "I need it all, Kakashi-sensei. I'm aiming to be the greatest Hokage that ever lived. I need to increase my chakra pool, increase my control, neutralize my weakness to genjutsu, learn more ninjutsu than even Hiru-jiji, and be better at taijutsu than the likes of Maito Gai. I need to learn Fuuinjutsu and increase my skill with Bojutsu. I would also like to learn more clone techniques other than Bunshin and Kage Bunshin. I have this idea in my head of being a ninja known for never really being there, if that makes sense? I will always be a clone, with the real me watching from the shadows. I want to get so good with Kawarimi and clone techniques that I can seamlessly swap around the battlefield with my clones… hm, I think that's about it."</p><p>The rest of Team 7 could only stare at Naruto in surprise for the second time today after he finished talking. Oda's mouth was agape and Sakura's eyes were wide at the extensive list the blonde had just rattled off.</p><p>"That was… specific," Kakashi said with a chuckle, "But all of it is definitely attainable through hard work. I'll make sure to devise a particularly brutal regimen for you Naruto, to cover all your bases."</p><p>Not to be outdone, Sakura interjected, "I want a really brutal regimen too sensei!"</p><p>"Yeah!" Oda agreed, "Me too!"</p><p>Kakashi's eyes twinkled with glee, and for a moment all three genin wondered what they had gotten themselves in to, "Done deal my little students. You've warmed my heart already at how seriously you are taking your ninja duties. Now, onto the chakra natures!"</p><p>The genin of Team 7 perked up upon hearing this. Sakura took note that Naruto didn't seem nearly as pumped up as she and Oda were. The blonde boy seemed to already have a sense of where this was going, and Sakura recalled that he had used wind natured chakra in the exam. She decided it was likely that he already knew his chakra nature. The pink-haired genin brushed those thoughts aside as Kakashi pulled four pieces of paper out of one of his vest pockets.</p><p>"These," Kakashi explained, holding up the blank paper so his genin could see them clearly, "are chakra nature papers. Through a cool quirk of the material it is made of, these papers will reveal your chakra natures once you channel a bit of your chakra into them, like so..."</p><p>With that remark Kakashi took one of the pieces of paper and pushed his chakra into it. First the paper wrinkled and crumpled up, then it burst into flames and burned to ashes as Kakashi let it fall from his hand.</p><p>He began handing each of his students a chakra paper as he spoke, "So, my paper crinkled first, which means my strongest affinity is Lightning. Then it burst into flames, meaning my second affinity is Fire. Since both reactions were very potent, it means both of my affinities are strong. Now do yours…"</p><p>Sakura hesitated a moment, content to watch her teammates take the plunge first. She looked on as Oda and Naruto channeled their chakra and received their results. The Yoshimaru heir's paper burst into flames, and he quickly dropped it to the ground where it burned to ashes. Next, Sakura watched as Naruto's paper split in half down the middle. She was flabbergasted when one half burst into flames, and the other half crumbled to dust. Even Kakashi looked surprised at the reaction.</p><p>"Well," Their sensei said, shock evident in his voice, "That isn't something you see often. Naruto's primary affinity is Wind, but he also has an affinity for Earth and for Fire that are nearly as strong. You don't seem at all surprised, Naruto."</p><p>The blonde scratched the back of his head sheepishly, "Well, truth be told Hiru-jiji had me do this a month ago. I've already learned a few jutsu of each of my chakra natures, and Asuma is helping me add wind nature to my staff attacks."</p><p>Oda and Sakura could again only look on in surprise. The pinkette felt a flush of annoyance upon hearing that Naruto was so far ahead of her when it came to ninjutsu. Plus he would always have an advantage over most ninja, since most only had one or two affinities. She watched as Kakashi rubbed his chin in thought before nodding.</p><p>"That's how you used that wind strike with your staff during the exam," Kakashi remarked before turning his attention to his female student, "And what about you, Sakura?"</p><p>The pinkette looked down at the paper still clutched in her hand. With a small sigh she channeled a bit of chakra into it. The paper soaked through with water, before being cut in half down the middle. As the pieces of paper fell from her hand Sakura could not hide her surprise.</p><p>"Interesting!" Their sensei exclaimed, smiling, "So your primary affinity is Water, with Wind being a close second. Very nice. We have a lot to work with here."</p><p>Sakura nearly jumped for joy, but she refrained. She could tell that Oda was depressed after her results, what with him being the only team member on Team 7 with only one affinity. The girl was sure that the fact that his affinity was also the most common in Konoha didn't help. The pinkette settled for a smile small to hide the full extent of her joy. She briefly noticed Naruto giving her a rather evaluating look. She was about to ask him what he wanted but became distracted when Kakashi created two Kage Bunshin suddenly.</p><p>"Alright, now that we are done with all that," The silver-haired jonin started, "We will begin working on your personal training regimens. Since this part is individualized, each of you will follow one of me, and we will find appropriate places in Training Ground 9 to begin. Are you ready?"</p><p>A surge of energy shot through Sakura, causing her to grin and smack one of her fists into an open palm, "Let's do this!"</p><p>With that Team 7 vanished into the trees, leaving the main clearing of Training Ground 9 behind.</p><p>/-/</p><p>A/N: And there you have it.</p><p>Chapter 4 of A Single Ripple.</p><p>Hopefully you all enjoy the results of this chapter. Sakura had a little time in the spotlight, as she felt like the right character to drive the story forward this time. She will continue to be an important perspective throughout the story, as I'm sure is obvious by now.</p><p>Something I forgot to explain/clear up/translate, is Sakura's nickname or insult for Naruto, the word "yaro" that is sometimes attached to the end of his name, means "jerk" or something akin to that. It is considered a soft insult, and can even sometimes be used endearingly.</p><p>So the story seems to be well received so far on AO3, though I am not getting nearly the traffic for it that I am on FF.net. Anyway, I appreciate all the hits, kudos, comments, and bookmarks! Thank you all!</p><p>Anyway, let me know what you all think! As usual, please like, subscribe, follow, review, share, all the things! And once again thanks for reading!</p><p>Until next time,<br/>KnS</p>
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